Lady in Red 2: Angel in Disguise
by Northern-Southern Belle
Summary: Jeremy develops a crush on the Gilberts' pretty new neighbor that causes Elena concern; Selina enrolls at Mystic Falls High to the delight of some and dismay of others. DamonXOC
1. The New Neighbor

Disclaimer: Only original characters and situations belong to me!

Coffee in hand, Jenna sat watching as Jeremy stared out the window. "What are you looking at?" she asked finally.

"Somebody finally moved into the house next door," he replied, still keeping his eyes out the window, where he had a good view of the moving men as they lugged couches and an armoire out of the back of their van and into the house.

"Oh," Jenna stood up and went to join him at the window. "So," she said, clearing her throat, "have you gotten a glimpse of our new neighbor yet?"

"Yeah," Jeremy nodded. "She's pretty. Black hair, dresses really nice."

Jenna grinned. "You can tell all that from looking out the window? I'm impressed."

Jeremy turned. "Maybe we should be neighborly after awhile and go and say hello."

"Oh, all right," Jenna said. "We'll do it when you get back from school."

"What's going on?" Elena entered the kitchen, backpack over her shoulder.

"Well," Jenna said, "somebody finally bought the house next door and it seems that your brother has a little crush on her."

"There she is!" Jeremy cried out excitedly. "You two come look!"

Elena and Jenna looked at one another and rolled their eyes, but did as he asked. The woman looked just as Jeremy had described: black hair, nice clothes, and, standing next to one of the workmen, she seemed to be quite tiny.

"I told Jeremy we'd go and introduce ourselves later today. Do you want to come with us?"

"Sure," Elena said. "Why not?" She looked up at the clock on the wall. "Jer," she said to her brother, "we should probably leave for school now."

Although it took great effort, Jeremy managed to tear himself away from the window, grab his bag, and follow Elena out the door to her car.

When they arrived at school, the first person Elena saw was Caroline. "I can't believe my bad luck," she fumed. "First Mitch leaves town without a word, and then _she_ shows up at school, the girl who stole him away from me."

"What do you mean?" Elena asked. She didn't know how she was going to tell Caroline that her would-be college boyfriend Mitch was no more.

"I saw her in at the coffee shop this morning. She was just sitting there with this smug look on her face. I bet she's got plans."

"Who are you talking about, Caroline?" They stopped outside the door to the history classroom. Caroline put her arm out to prevent Elena from entering. "There she is," Caroline whispered. "Just sitting there bold as anything."

Elena looked into the room. There were several people in there but no one unusual. Then, she finally realized who Caroline was talking about. "Caroline," she said, "when did Sophia Warren enroll here?"

Caroline shrugged. "Just today, I guess."

Elena stepped into the room and went to stand in front of the desk where the other girl was sitting. "Hi, Selina," she whispered. "What are you doing here?"

Selina looked up. "I wanted to expand my mind," she said simply. "You know, way back when, women weren't allowed to learn as they pleased, so I figure since it's okay now that I should take advantage of the opportunity."

"Sounds reasonable to me," Elena said, taking the empty seat next to her. "But Caroline's not too happy about it."

"Really?" Selina asked, smiling. "Is she still contemptuous of me for going out with Damon?" she held out her hand so she could get a better view of the engagement ring he'd recently given her. "I bet if she saw this, Caroline would change her mind about him very quickly."

"Actually," Elena said, "her problem with you isn't about Damon at all. Apparently, she had her heart set on dating your father and believes that you stole him away from her."

Selina burst out laughing. "Are you serious? It doesn't surprise me that she's really that petty." Then, the laughter stopped. "Thank God Daddy found me before anything happened between him and Caroline," she said. "Otherwise, they probably _would_ have dated, and maybe even have gotten married, and then I would've had to spend the rest of Caroline's existence referring to her as 'mother.' She shuddered. "My God. Give me Mr. Pierce any day."

Elena had to laugh at that. Just then, Caroline finally decided to come in and passed by them, glaring.

Selina and Elena just looked at one another and rolled their eyes. Soon, other students began to trickle in, none of whom had as strong a reaction to Selina's presence as Caroline. They looked at her curiously for a moment, as people are wont to do when they see someone they don't know, but after a few seconds of polite gawking, they'd take their seats and keep their eyes on the chalkboard at the front of the room.

When Stefan came in, he did a double-take. "Selina," he whispered after he'd gotten his bearings, "I'm surprised to see you here."

Selina looked at him knowingly. "And when you say 'surprised,' do you actually mean that you're surprised, or that you're some other emotion, like stunned or angry, or disappointed?"

"No," Stefan shook his head. "I mean I really am surprised. Why would I be any of those other things?"

"Because here I am, in a school, learning stuff that'll make me smart and a fully functioning member of society."

Stefan frowned a moment, then realized what she was getting at. "If you're trying to imply that I wouldn't want you here because it would be a threat to my masculinity, you're wrong. I'm proud that you want to expand your mind."

Selina smiled. "Thanks. And it gives me something to do with myself, you know?"

"Yep." Stefan took the seat behind Elena. "Just one thing," he said. "Does Damon know you're doing this?"

Selina nodded. "Of course he does. In fact, it was actually somewhat his idea. He said I needed to go out and meet people."

"When was that and why?" Elena asked.

"Well," Selina replied, "We were thinking about wedding plans after we got up this morning and realized that we don't even have enough friends for a small, intimate wedding. Isn't that pathetic?"

"So you're here to make friends to invite to your wedding?" Elena asked.

"No," Selina shook her head. "I'm here to learn stuff. After much thought, we decided that we're eloping to Vegas, and the two of you are going to be our witnesses."

"Jenna's going to have to come along," Elena said. "I don't think she'd let me just go off to Vegas by myself, or with Stefan, but I don't think she'd be opposed to it."

"Good," Selina smiled.

Just then, the bell rang, signaling the start of class, and Alaric entered the room, carrying an old book under his arm.

"Morning everyone," he said, looking around at them. His eyes found Selina. "Are you the new student?" he asked. "The office told me that we were getting someone new in the class today."

"Yes I am," Selina replied, standing up. "Do you want me to come up to the front and say a few words about myself to the class?"

"If you don't mind," Alaric replied.

Selina walked to the front of the room. "I'm Sophia Warren. I'm sure some of you already know me, I've been in Mystic Falls for awhile and let me say it's a much more exciting place to live then back in Charleston where I lived with my uncle. I look forward to getting to know all of you and learning a great deal about history." She took deep breath and headed back to her seat.

"Thank you, Sophia," Alaric said. "Now, do you go by Sophia, or do you prefer something like Sophie?"

Selina shook her head. "Sophia's fine."

"All right," Alaric said, making a note on the attendance sheet. "Now that we got that taken care of, I have a special treat for you all today: a ghost story."

At that, Selina ripped off a corner of a sheet of notebook paper and wrote_ I hope it's the Lady in Red. Wouldn't that be funny?_, and slipped it onto Elena's desk. Elena looked it over and grinned, nodding.

"The story takes place during over a period of about twenty years," Alaric continued. "And the star of it is a young lady called-"

He paused when he noticed that Elena was raising her hand. "Yes?"

"Are you telling us the story of the Lady in Red?" she asked.

"No," Alaric shook his head. "But that _is_ a very good story. No, the young lady in this story was named Lucy in life, but in death, she was known as the Blue Angel. She got the nickname because she served as a nurse on the battlefield in both the Mexican-American and Civil Wars. And the amazing thing was, she died at a ripe old age. No horrors of war affected her health." He paused "Yes, Sophia?"

Selina cleared her throat. "Does this angel named Lucy have a last name, or has that been lost to time?"

He shrugged. "I didn't see any last name. Every publication I looked at referred to her either as simply 'Lucy' or as 'the Blue Angel.' Why do you ask?"

Selina shook her head. "It's not important. I was just curious."

Alaric then proceeded to tell them the story about Lucy the Blue Angel, who was apparently such a good nurse that hardly any soldiers died on her watch. She even fell in love with one of them, although her father, who was a doctor, objected to the match. she apparently never forgave her father for denying her the man she loved and she spent the rest of her days loving nothing except her work.

After the class let out, Selina followed Elena to her locker. "What'd you think of that story? Pretty dull, wasn't it?"

"Yeah," Elena nodded. "Not like yours. But did it sound familiar to you?"

"Yeah," Selina agreed. "But it's probably just a coincidence that the nurse who turned my father during the Mexican-American War was named Lucy and so is the nurse in the story. I mean, Lucy wasn't an uncommon name back then."

"I bet you're right," Elena said. Then, she turned. "If you want to get to know Jenna before we all go off to Vegas for your wedding, come home with me after school today."

"All right," Selina nodded, pulling out her phone. "Just let me make Damon aware that I won't be back until later and I'll meet you at the end of the day."

"All right," Elena nodded and headed off to her next class, while Selina went to her locker to exchange books.

"Didn't expect to see you here."

Selina turned, her arms full of books. "Get the hell away from me, Tyler. I don't want to talk to you."

"Why so bitter?" he asked.

"Are you serious?" she asked. "I'm an orphan now and it's all your damn fault."

Tyler shook his head. "It really isn't. If Damon hadn't killed Michael, your father would still be around. So if you want to blame anyone for your father's death, blame him."

"You are a despicable human being," Selina said through her teeth. "You are so lucky we're in a public place, or nothing would stop me from ripping your heart out right now."

"Is there a problem here?"

Selina and Tyler both turned. "No problem, Donovan," Tyler said easily. "My cousin just enrolled here and I thought I'd show her around."

Matt looked at Selina. "Well, it doesn't look like she's too happy to see you. Why don't you get going so you aren't late to shop? I'll show your cousin around."

Tyler opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. Finally, he turned on his heel and heading in the direction of his shop class.

As soon as he was gone, Selina looked at Matt. "Thank you so much," she said graciously. "I know he's family, but sometimes, he can be the biggest pain in the ass."

Matt nodded. "Trust me, I know the feeling."

He looked at her schedule. "Hey, I have the same class as you. Do you want me to take you there?"

Selina nodded. "Thanks. That'd be very kind of you."

* * *

The rest of the day passed by uneventfully, and Selina was glad when she met Elena at her locker. She watched while Elena put her books away and then followed her out to her car.

"Do you think your aunt's going to like me?" Selina asked.

"Yeah," Elena nodded. "Except for one thing: she had her heart set on giving your locket to the mayor so that it could be put on display at the next Founder's Day celebration and you broke it. That might tick her off a little. Unless we come up with a cunning explanation as to where it went."

When they finally pulled into the driveway of the Gilbert House, Elena was surprised to see Jenna and Jeremy on their way out. "You two going over to see our new neighbor?" Elena called.

"Yeah," Jenna nodded. "Do you want to come too?"

Elena got out of the car, and Selina followed suit. They went with Jenna to the house next door and knocked on the door. After a minute or so, the door opened, revealing their new neighbor.

"Hi," Jenna said when she saw her. "I'm Jenna Sommers, I live next door. This is my niece Elena and my nephew Jeremy."

"And this is-"

"Selina?" said the woman, looking at her in surprise. "I haven't seen you in ages!"

"We know each other?" Selina asked.

The young woman nodded. "My name is Lucy. Lucy Warren."


	2. Stepmom?

Jenna smiled. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Lucy, and welcome to the neighborhood. If you need anything at all, don't hesitate to stop by."

Lucy turned her gaze away from Selina to look at Jenna. "Thank you so much. I'll be sure to keep your generous invitation in mind." She grinned. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to give the movers more instruction about where to put my things."

Jenna nodded. "No problem. We'll see you around." And with that, the four of them headed back to the Gilbert house and settled into the kitchen again. Selina took a seat next to Elena, and Jenna looked at them both. "So," she said, looking at Selina, "who are you?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Selina told her. "My name is Sophia Warren. I moved here from Charleston awhile back. Elena and I met at school."

Jenna smiled. "It's nice to meet you." She paused. "Warren. Would you, by chance be related to our new neighbor? How did she know you?"

Elena looked at Selina, curious how she was going to respond to Jenna's query.

After giving herself a moment to think, Selina said finally, "we aren't actually related. Before my father died, he went through a midlife crisis and left my mother for a younger woman."

"And is that her?" Jenna asked.

Selina nodded. "Yep. I never really forgave my father for leaving my mother and it is the one thing I regret; that we never actually reconciled."

"I'm sorry," Jenna said.

Selina nodded. "Thank you."

"We have something else to tell you," Elena said. "Remember the locket I Jeremy and I found in the front yard of Roger Stensrund's house?"

Jenna nodded. "The one that supposedly belonged to the Lady in Red? Yeah, I remember it. Where did it go? I told the mayor I'd have it for him before the next Founder's Day. He was amazed that you two had found such an important piece of town history."

"Well," Elena replied, "it's really not going to be possible for you to get it to the mayor before next Founder's Day."

Jenna frowned. "Why is that? What happened to it?"

"Well," Selina answered, "the Lady in Red, of course, was a member of my family, and when my uncle found out that I had the locket, he insisted on having it back so he could take it and have it appraised on one of those shows where they tell people that the junk they have in their attics actually has value. I tried to tell him not to, but when my uncle gets an idea, it's really hard to distract him from it."

"Oh," Jenna said sighing. "I guess that's all right then. For a moment, I thought you were going to say that it was lost or broken."

Selina and Elena exchanged looks and then laughed weakly. "What made you think we were going to say that?" Elena asked.

Jenna shrugged. "I don't know. I'm sorry to see it go, though. It really is a pretty piece of jewelry."

"It is," Selina said. "But things don't last forever, do they?"

Jenna shook her head. "I guess not."

"There's one more thing I have to ask you, Jenna," Elena said. "Sophia is getting married to Stefan's brother Damon and they've decided to elope to Vegas with the two of us as witnesses. Would you mind that?"

"As long as I'm coming with, I don't mind," Jenna said. "I've always wanted to go to Vegas." She looked at Selina and smiled. "Congratulations."

"Thank you," Selina replied. "And speaking of Damon," she said, looking up at the clock on the wall, "I should probably be getting home. We still have a few more things we need to get settled."

"I'll drive you," Elena said.

"Thanks," Selina replied. "It was nice meeting you," she told Jenna. "And thanks for letting Elena come to my wedding."

"No problem," Jenna said, smiling. "I hope I'll see you again some time."

"So," Elena said as they were driving away, "what do you think the connection really is between you and our new neighbor?"

"Well," Selina replied, "I believe it's exactly what I told your aunt; she's someone Daddy got involved with and didn't tell me about. Well actually," she paused. "He did tell me about her. If she is who I think she is, she's the person responsible for making him a vampire."

"Who do you think she is?" Elena asked.

"The nurse at the hospital where they stuck Daddy after he caught typhoid fever. He said that the reason why she turned him was because she felt bad that he was never going to get to say goodbye to Mama and me, and that he and she were never romantically involved, but after that little introduction, I wonder."

"You mean you think they were?"

"Well, why else would she introduce herself as Lucy Warren?" Selina asked.

"You make a good point," Elena agreed. "But your father was a good guy, and he really seemed to be in love with your mother. I doubt he'd get involved with anyone else. And if he had, he would have been honest and told you that he'd been in another relationship."

"So are we thinking that your new neighbor is delusional?" Selina asked.

"I don't know," Elena shrugged. "We'll just have to wait and see."

When they reached the boarding house, Elena dropped Selina off at the door, they waved goodbye to one another, and Elena sped away. Selina opened the door and practically fell onto the carpet.

"Well that was quite an entrance," Damon remarked, looking up. "Have a good day at school?"

"I guess," Selina said, pulling herself up and sighing.

"Stefan said you made quite an impression."

Selina nodded. "I do my best." She paused a moment, then said, "something weird happened today. Something that might not be good."

"What?" Stefan asked.

"Well, I went home with Elena after school so we could talk her aunt into letting her be a witness at our wedding, but before the talk started, we went next door to meet their new neighbor. And it was the weirdest thing: she knows me, but I don't know her. It's just like it was with Daddy."

"What was her name?" Damon asked.

"Well," Selina replied, "I know who she is even if don't remember meeting her. When she introduced herself to Elena's aunt, the name she used was Lucy Warren."

"Wasn't the vampire who turned your father named Lucy?" Damon asked.

"Yep," Selina nodded. "I think they're the same person. She was there when I was a kid and Daddy would visit me and Dr. Stensrund. That's what she was referring to when she said she hadn't seen me in a long time. But here's what's bugging me: Why did she tell Elena's aunt that Warren was her last name? Daddy told me that he and Lucy were never involved because Dr. Stensrund wouldn't allow it for some reason."

"What if your father was mistaken?" Stefan asked.

Selina frowned. "Stefan, don't be silly. I think my father would know if he was involved with someone or not."

"Just stay with me on this," Stefan told her, undeterred. "What if he and Lucy were involved, but he didn't want to tell you because he didn't want you thinking he'd been unfaithful to your mother?"

Selina's eyes widened. "Are you suggesting that my father wasn't totally honest with me?" she asked.

"It's possible," Stefan replied.

"Or," Damon said carefully, frowning at Stefan as he watched Selina's face. "It could be that she's just delusional and she and Matthew really had no relationship outside of his transformation at all."

"That's what Elena and I think," Selina put in, her expression lightening. "That she's delusional. What do you think brought her here? If she's here to reunite with Daddy, she's going to be really disappointed when she finds out that he's not around anymore."

"Is that why you're so worried about her being here?" Stefan asked Selina. "Do you think she's dangerous and going to be a threat to the entire town?"

"I don't know yet," Selina shrugged. "I only spoke to her for two seconds. She seems harmless enough, but you never know."

"Do we know for sure that she's the vampire who turned your father, or are you just guessing?" Damon asked. "Do you know if she's even a vampire at all? She could just be a relative of yours that you didn't know about who happens to have the same name as the vampire who turned your father."

"For now, it's just a guess," Selina admitted. "But I think it's a pretty solid one. If she's a relative I don't know about, how would she know me?" Selina asked.

"I don't know," Damon shrugged. "I'm just trying to think up possible reasons why she'd know you. To tell you the truth, I'm just as clueless as you are right now."

"Well, I'm going to warn Elena to keep a close eye on her," Selina said. "And I just might do some spying myself. If she's just a regular human, that'll be a weird coincidence and a relief, but if it turns out she's a vampire, then we'll have to figure out what she's doing here, and then head it off in case it's something nefarious."

* * *

The woman called Lucy Warren watched as the men packed up after placing the last couch in the living room. It had been a long day that was for sure, and full of surprises. Like that visit from her neighbors. She would enjoy getting to know them. And of course, getting reacquainted with Selina. She hadn't seen her since she'd been alive, and she had absolutely no idea who had changed her, but Lucy hoped things had gone well for her since she'd last seen her.

Lucy decided that she'd find out from the neighbor girl Elena where Selina lived and then pay her a little visit. She had many questions to ask her, one in particular: If Selina knew where her father happened to be. She probably wouldn't be able to answer it because as far as Lucy knew, she had no actual memories of her father; he and the doctor had wiped her mind clean every time he visited her so she wouldn't inadvertently let her mother in on his existence when he was supposedly dead, but there was the possibility that since they were both vampires, she might have run into him at some point and then stayed in contact with him.

And if Selina _did_ happen to know where her father was, then she'd tell Lucy and the two of them would go and find him. Then he'd see her and fall in love with her. He was probably very lonely; she figured his wife had been dead for years. There was no doubt in her mind that this time, when she proposed they be together, he would smile, say yes, and whisk her away to some place secret.

Lucy was grinning now. The thought of being reunited with Matthew Warren had been with her for years, ever since her father had scolded her for turning him as he lay dying. That had surprised her; she thought her father would be pleased that she hadn't let Matthew die; he _had_ been very fond of him. But that hadn't been the case. Her father had scolded her for turning Matthew without alerting him first; because of her carelessness, he'd said, Matthew had been buried alive, in a manner of speaking, and could've experienced terrible difficulties if no one had come and dug him up.

Her father. He was probably still around here too. She hadn't seen him since their fight following Matthew's transformation. Maybe it was time to bury the hatchet and tell him she was sorry for disobeying him. If she did that, maybe he'd be more agreeable to her marrying Matthew. She went into the kitchen and wrote on the calendar on the refrigerator _go see Father tomorrow to apologize for fight._ She'd told people for years that her name was Lucy Warren, but tomorrow, for the first time since 1847, she'd be herself again and go by the name she was born with: Lucy Eleanor Stensrund.


	3. Home Alone

It was past midnight and Selina found herself pacing back and forth in the living room, still thinking about what Stefan had said. Could her father and Lucy have been involved? It didn't make sense. If they had, he would have told her so. It wouldn't have shocked her if her father would have admitted he was seeing somebody else; it was probably only natural that he might have been in other relationships. After all, her mother had married Mr. Pierce after her father had died. Why shouldn't her father have been in another relationship?

She stopped pacing, took a deep breath and lay down on the couch, staring at the chandelier. It was late. She probably should go upstairs and try to get some sleep. By thinking about this as much as she was, she was only torturing herself, and probably for no reason. She sat up and then went upstairs. She entered the bedroom she and Damon shared and headed straight for the bathroom. She opened the door and started when she saw that Damon was standing shirtless at the sink.

As the door burst open, he turned halfway and looked at her. "Can I help you?" he asked.

She blinked and shook her head. "No," she said after a moment. "I-I was just looking."

He grinned, turning the rest of the way so he was facing her. "See anything you like?"

She nodded and stepped in the rest of the way. "What do you think?" she asked. She straddled a bench in front of the tub and watched him.

After a moment, he came and sat behind her on the bench. "You seem tense," he told her as he unbuttoned her blouse and pulled it off her. "Are you still worrying that your father cheated on your mother and didn't tell you?"

"No," Selina replied as he began to rub her shoulders. "I think I've come to terms with that. I mean, Mama married Mr. Pierce after Daddy died, so why shouldn't he have been in another relationship?"

"That's very mature of you," he commented, moving to her back. "So what are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know," Selina replied. "I think maybe I'll sleep on it first, and maybe things will be clearer in the morning." She paused. "Do you think it's a bit warm in here?" she asked.

"Yeah," Damon nodded. "It's cooler in the bedroom." They looked at one another for a split second before standing up so fast that they knocked the bench over with a crash before racing for the bed.

The next day was a Saturday, so Selina could sleep in without worrying about missing school. It was close to noon before she finally opened her eyes and sat up. "What a night," she whispered to herself.

"Thank you," Damon said sitting up beside her. "You weren't so bad yourself."

Rolling her eyes and grinning, Selina punched him in the arm. "It's nice to know you're so modest."

He shook his head. "Modesty is for suckers. A person shouldn't be ashamed to embrace their talents."

Selina snorted. "And I'm sure you had many years to practice and polish yours."

Damon shook his head and embraced her. "I don't need practice," he said.

"Of course you do," Selina replied, grinning mischievously. "Even my old buddy Georges at the artists' colony had an off day every once in awhile."

Damon pulled away. "That was a cheap shot."

Selina shrugged. "I'm just saying. But don't worry. Last night wasn't an off night. In fact, I _do_ feel better this morning."

"Good," Damon replied. "You're not freaked out anymore?"

Selina slowly pulled the covers away. "I told you I wasn't, remember? I've decided that since Mama married Mr. Pierce after Daddy died, I see no reason why Daddy shouldn't have been in another relationship after he was turned."

"Right, I remember that now," Damon said as he got out of bed and began dressing. "So what do you want to do today?" he asked.

"I want to see her," Selina replied immediately, heading for the bathroom.

"Her who?" Damon asked.

"Lucy," Selina answered. "Elena's new neighbor? The one who might have been involved with my father? Who else would I be talking about?"

"Wait a minute," Damon said just before Selina shut the bathroom door. "I thought you said you'd come to terms with her. Why do you want to go see her?"

"I said I'd come to terms with the possible relationship she had with my father," Selina corrected him. "That doesn't mean I'm not curious why she's here."

"All right," Damon told her. "We'll go over later today. Now, you're sure she knows you? Because it might be kind of strange if we show up on her doorstep and she has no idea who you are."

"Oh, she knows me," Selina assured him. "In fact, I bet she's gonna ask Elena where I live pretty soon so we can talk." She paused. "And if that's the case, let's just make things easier and go seek _her_ out."

"Do you think we should call first?" Damon asked.

Selina shook her head. "Don't be silly. If it turns out she's not home, it'll be an ideal time to make some observations. We'll be able to find out just by looking around if she's up to no good."

"Okay," Damon nodded and threw on a shirt. "So we're going to go to Elena's neighbor's house and breaking in so that you can figure out whether or not she and your father were involved."

"No!" Selina shook her head. "Well, maybe," she admitted.

"As long as we're clear on motive, when do you want to leave?" he asked.

"Meet you at the car in twenty minutes," Selina said.

* * *

Lucy pulled up in front of the large white house and stared at it. It didn't look much different. The only unusual thing was that the yard looked as if it had been dug up. But then again, that was easy to account for; maybe there was a mole problem in this area. She put the car in park and stepped out of it, taking a deep breath before striding up the front steps and pushing the door open. "Father?" she called. "Are you here?"

When she got no response, she stepped further into the front entryway. The place was remarkably clean; either her father had taken to doing housework, or else he'd hired a maid. She took a seat on the sofa and thought a moment. There probably wouldn't be a note about his whereabouts anywhere because he hadn't known she was coming. She'd just have to wait until he came back.

Until then, she thought to herself, I might as well take the opportunity to look around and see what Father's been up to since I saw him last. She stood up from the couch and began looking in the different rooms. When she entered the attic, she gasped. The floor and walls were spattered with blood. The stains shown in the early afternoon light. "What happened here?" she whispered to herself. She began to panic. What if something had happened to her father? She'd heard rumors that there'd been a push to cleanse the town of vampires just prior to the end of the Civil War. Had her father been a victim? Is that why he wasn't here? She left the attic and took a few deep breaths. "He's fine," she whispered to herself. "The stains probably came from when he was fighting his attackers off. He's probably off on business in some other town and will be back soon. I'll just go home and come back tomorrow. Maybe he'll be back by then." Resolute, she went downstairs and back to her car, heading home.

* * *

"We're here!" Selina announced as she pulled up to Lucy's house.

"Great," Damon told her. "Now how do you plan to get in?"

"That won't be a problem," Selina assured him. "I brought a hairpin to jimmy the lock." She opened the door and stepped out of the car, walking slowly to ascend the front steps. She pulled the pin from her skirt pocket and was just about to slip it into the door when she noticed something shiny sticking out from the side of the welcome mat in front of the door.

"Ha!" she laughed, picking it up. "Damon," she said, holding it out to him. "Look at this, it's a key! It's like she knew we were coming!"

"How fortunate for you," Damon replied, coming up behind her. "If you have a key, that's not breaking and entering."

Selina fit the key in the lock and opened the door. Stepping inside, she gasped as she looked around. "I did _not_ expect it to look like this," she said.

"What _were _you expecting?" Damon asked. "Pictures and love letters to your father on every available surface?"

"Yes," Selina admitted.

Instead, she saw green velvet couches, a tiffany lamp next to the chaise longue in the corner, a Monet painting over the fireplace, and a vase of daisies on coffee table. "She has good taste, I will admit that." Then, she saw it on the fireplace mantle. "Look at what I found," Selina crowed. "I knew there'd be at least one of those somewhere."

A picture of her father stared back at her. It gave Selina chills just looking at it, even though she had one of her own that she kept on her bedside table.

"So there's a picture of your father," Damon replied. "Maybe he gave it to her out of a sense of gratitude because she stopped him from dying."

Selina shrugged. "Maybe." She thought a moment. "Maybe I was exaggerating when I said she might be up to something nefarious," she said. "I mean, do you honestly think this seems like the house of a dangerous person?"

"I don't know," Damon replied, looking out the window. "Maybe you can ask her what she's here for. She just pulled up."

"Damn," Selina muttered. "You think we should hide?"

But before either of them could move, the doorknob turned and the door opened. Lucy stepped inside and when she saw them standing there, she started.

"Selina!" she said after she recovered her equilibrium. "This is a nice surprise." She sat down.

"Sorry we didn't call first," Selina said. "But you weren't here, and there was a key under your mat so we just let ourselves in." she paused, indicating Damon beside her. "This is my fiancé Damon Salvatore. I hope you don't mind that I brought him along."

"That's all right," Lucy replied. "I actually left the key there for you in case you _did _stop by today. I thought you might. Now," she said, "what can I do for you?"

Selina took a deep breath. "I want to know about you and my father. Because he told me you weren't involved with each other, but you call yourself Lucy Warren, and I just want to be absolutely certain about things. And don't go saying that it's none of my business, because it is."

"No, I wouldn't dream of saying something like that," Lucy assured her. "You have every right. But, first…you've seen your father? And you know about me and him?" She looked at Selina eagerly.

"Yes." Selina nodded.

"Is he here?" asked Lucy. "Let's go see him right now."

Damon and Selina looked at one another for a long moment.

"What's the matter?" Lucy asked finally.

"My father's dead," Selina told her. "I got in trouble a few weeks ago, and Daddy was killed trying to save me."


	4. Truth or Lies

"_What?"_ Lucy asked. Her eyes were wide with shock.

"I said my father was staked a few weeks ago," Selina repeated. "It's an unfortunate story. I ran into my cousin Michael, he wanted to marry me, and while Daddy, Damon and his brother Stefan were saving me, my other cousin Tyler meant to stake me as revenge for not marrying Michael, but Daddy got in the way and took the stake that was meant for me."

"Oh, my God." Lucy was looking as if her world had been shattered. Selina didn't blame her one bit; she'd gone through the same thing after her father had died. "So let me get this straight," she said finally, looking up at Selina and Damon. "Matthew _was_ here?"

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "It was weird at first, and it took me awhile to realize it was him, but he was here."

Lucy gave her a small smile and put a hand on hers. "It doesn't surprise me that it took you awhile to recognize your father. I always though the memory-erasing he and the doctor did on you after your visits was a big mistake."

Selina sighed. "It might have been, but it happened, and there's nothing we can do about it now, is there?"

Lucy shook her head ruefully. "At least you eventually figured out it was him," she said finally.

"I didn't actually," Selina told her. "That was Damon's doing. He had more of the pieces to put together than I did."

"Well good for you," Lucy looked at Damon approvingly and he nodded.

"It was actually simple once I put everything together: his behavior toward her, what I sensed, and what was in her mother's journals. Add all those things up, and there was only one person he could be."

Now Lucy was looking thoughtful. "I haven't seen my father in years either. After your father left, he and I parted ways and I haven't seen him since, oh, let me think." She paused and then looked back at Selina. "Since you were a little girl, really."

"Is that why you came here?" Selina asked. "To reconcile with your father?"

"Yes," Lucy replied. "And to see yours. but since we've already established that isn't going to be possible, I guess that just leaves one person to reacquaint myself with. I stopped by his house earlier to let him know that I was here, but he wasn't in."

"Huh," Selina replied. "Where do you think he went?"

Lucy shrugged. "I don't know. I have two theories. One that's good, and one that's not so good. The good theory says that the reason why he's gone is that he's had to take work in another town and he gets back late, so I'll see him tomorrow."

"What's the not-so-good theory?" Selina asked.

"Well," Lucy crossed her legs on the sofa and took a deep breath. "I've heard rumors about a vampire cleansing in this town just before the end of the Civil War. I did some exploring around my father's house before I left it, and I found that the attic was just covered in blood; it was like a mad slasher room at a haunted house." She shuddered. "Part of me is afraid that my father was a victim of the cleansing and that all the blood in the attic is from the townspeople torturing him before they killed him."

"Wait a minute," Selina said. "You went to your father's house and found blood spattered all over his attic?"

"Yeah," Lucy said. "It was just the most awful thing I've ever seen. I hope he made it out okay, I really do. But enough of my problems; how are you still here?" She abruptly changed the subject and gazed at Selina.

"Just a second," Selina put up her hand. She was beginning to have a sick feeling in her stomach. "Before I tell you how I'm still here, I need you to tell me one more thing: what's your father's name?"

"Roger," Lucy said after a moment. "Roger Stensrund. That's my last name too, but I changed it after we became estranged."

"It figures," Selina whispered to herself.

"What?" Lucy asked.

"Nothing," Selina shook her head. "Now, about how I'm still here-"

"You don't want to hear that," Damon interrupted. "It's a terrifically boring story." He looked at Selina. "I think we need to go. I just realized something that I forgot to do."

"You have to leave so soon?" Lucy asked, standing up. "That's a pity. But you will come back sometime, right?"

"Of course," Selina said, smiling at Lucy, and then giving Damon a frown. "It was really nice to meet you, Lucy." Then, before she could say anything else, Damon dragged her out the door and practically threw her in the front seat of the car, starting it before he was even fully inside.

"What the hell was that about?" Selina asked once the car was moving. "Why wouldn't you let me tell her why I'm still here? She obviously wanted to know."

"You mean to tell me that you were contemplating telling her that you killed her father?"

"Why not?" Selina asked, shrugging. "She probably wouldn't blame me for it. I mean, if they hadn't wiped my memory of him, then I would have remembered he was good, and then I probably wouldn't have killed him, so in actuality, his staking is his own fault, not mine."

"I think you're putting way too much faith in that excuse, sweetheart," Damon replied. "She's already found out that the love of her life was murdered in cold blood. Finding out that her father was killed, regardless of the circumstances, just might push her over the edge."

"We don't have to tell her that I killed Dr. Stensrund. We could confirm what she already thinks: that he was killed in the cleansing. It won't be too much of a stretch, and that's probably what she already thinks anyway, so why complicate things by telling the truth?"

"I repeat," Damon was starting to get impatient. "Regardless of how her father died, finding out that she has neither a boyfriend nor a father to come home to is probably going to push her over the edge and make her act in a way that might put the whole town in danger."

"Well," Selina asked. "What do you suggest I say to her query about why I'm still here?"

"You could say that I changed you," he replied. "That I was turned by your sister in a moment of passion, but then, when I found out you were sick, I turned you to save your life, and so we could be together forever."

Selina snorted. "That is so lame."

"Hey," he replied. "Had I known you were actually ill, it might have happened. After _I_ killed Dr. Stensrund to get him out of the way."

"Actually, it wouldn't have happened," Selina countered. "If you would have waited to see me until you got back on leave, I would have already been dead for awhile and thus, you would have missed your opportunity."

"Well whatever, you know the gist of what I'm trying to say: we say I turned you, maybe stick a little bit about Katherine in there, but leave her father out of it."

"I don't see why we can't just tell her the truth now," Selina said. "Eventually she's going to find out, and then she'll be even madder when she finds out that we lied to her all this time."

"It wouldn't be lying," Damon replied. "It would be withholding information."

Selina shook her head. "If we make up a story as you're suggesting we do, then it would be lying."

When they pulled into the driveway of the boarding house, they were still debating what to tell Lucy about her father. When they found Stefan and Elena sitting at the kitchen table, they sat on either side of them.

"Where have you two been?" Elena asked. "Or do I want to know?"

"We've been visiting that neighbor of yours, Lucy, and have run into a slight problem." Damon told her.

"What kind of a problem?" Elena asked. "Don't tell me she and your father were involved after all?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "It's actually thornier than that. The truth is that your neighbor Lucy is Dr. Stensrund's daughter. They were estranged and she came back to Mystic Falls to reconcile with him."

"Well that's going to be difficult," Stefan remarked. "Seeing as he's been dead for so long."

"And not only is he dead," Selina said, "I staked him. Remember that? The beginning of my descent into hedonism and depravity."

"Okay," Elena said. "So to sum up, my neighbor Lucy is one, a vampire, two, the daughter of Dr. Stensrund, who's dead, and three, the would-be paramour of your father, who is also dead."

"Yep. That about sums it up," Selina nodded. "We were talking about it, and she's worried that Dr. Stensrund was taken away during the Great Cleansing and that's why there's blood all over the attic."

"So what's the problem?" Stefan asked. "If she asks, just tell her that although it's unfortunate, the townspeople did do away with her father during the cleansing and that's why he's not around."

"I really don't think that's a good idea," Selina said. "Think about how many people in this town now are descended from the families on the original council. If she thinks that the council had anything to do with her father's death, she'll make targets of all of them. It'll be like a giant vengeance free-for-all. And that's why I think I should just be honest with her and tell her the truth about what happened between me and her father. That way, the only person she'll be mad at is me. And hey, she might not even be that. She knows that her father and my father erased my memory. She told me today that she'd always been against that. If she realizes that my killing of her father was because I didn't remember how good he'd been to me, then she might think of it more as an unfortunate accident rather than something that needs to be avenged." She paused. "We debated this in the car on the way back. What do you guys think? The reason this came up, by the way, is that she's curious about why I'm still here, and I'm pondering what to tell her."

Stefan and Elena looked at one another. It really was a thorny situation. On the one hand, lie and the whole town might be in danger. On the other, tell the truth and the whole town might be in danger. It was a lose-lose situation. Finally, Stefan said, "let's fib for now. Then we can keep a close eye on her. Since she seems to like you, Selina, she probably wouldn't mind being in your company."

Selina looked at him, amazed. "Is fibbing your answer to everything?" she asked, thinking about when he had insisted they lie to her about helping find Emily's grimoire.

"Not everything," Stefan replied. "Just the things where the truth would lead to undesirable outcomes."

"Oh." Selina replied sarcastically, "That makes a lot of sense."

"Guys," Elena said after a moment of silence. "I forgot that my brother has a crush on her. Do you think I should try and discourage it?"

"Well that depends," Selina said. "Do you want your brother involved with a lovesick vampire who's on the rebound, or will be any day now?"

"No," Elena shook her head. "I'll most definitely be discouraging him. But I have a feeling it won't be easy. Especially if she becomes aware that he has a crush on her. Then she'll encourage him, and he'll get himself in deep."

"Okay," Selina looked around the table. "So as for what to tell Lucy about how I became a vampire, we have two votes for fibbing to her, because that's what Damon said too, my vote for honesty, and Elena what do you think?"

Elena thought a moment. "I think you should tell her the truth," she said. "She's going to find out sooner or later, and if you're honest with her, she'll be less angry with you then if she finds out the truth and realizes that you were lying to her."

"That's what I was thinking," Selina said. "But apparently those two," she glared at Stefan and Damon, "don't feel the same way."

"Fine," Stefan said. "Tell her the truth. But when people start getting killed and the police find the bodies piled in the streets, it'll be on your heads."

Selina turned to Elena. "When I go see Lucy, you wanna come with me?"

"Sure," Elena nodded. "You're definitely going to need all the moral support you can get."


	5. The First Victim?

Sunday, Elena was busy with family things, so Selina stayed inside and practiced what she would say to Lucy when she saw her. She read over the sheet of paper for literally the fiftieth time and then ripped it up. Just as she was about to start writing again, there was a knock on her door.

"Come in," she called. "Unless all you want to do is nag at me about how I shouldn't be going to see Lucy, in which case you can save your breath."

At that, the door opened and Damon entered. "So, still planning to go it sounds like."

"Of course I'm still planning to go," Selina nodded. "Did you think that I'd changed my mind?"

"What I thought was that you'd come to your senses," he told her. He sighed. "But I guess not."

"Is there a particular reason you came in here?" Selina asked.

"Actually, yes," he told her. He held out the phone. "It's your loving cousin the mayor. It seems Tyler's gone missing and his father wants to know if you've heard from him lately."

Selina's eyes lit up. "Tyler's gone missing?" she said brightly. "That's wonderful!"

Damon held out the phone again. "Well, when you talk to the mayor, try and contain your enthusiasm."

Selina cleared her throat and took the phone. "Hello?"

"Selina," on the other end of the phone, the mayor sounded desperate. "Tyler's gone missing. I know the two of you were close. Has he contacted you since yesterday to tell you where he went?"

"No," Selina replied after a second's pause. "I'm sorry. In fact, I didn't know he was missing at all until Damon told me."

"Well," Mayor Lockwood replied, "if you hear anything from him, anything at all, call me right away."

Selina nodded to herself. "Of course I will; don't you worry. Goodbye, Mayor."

"Goodbye Selina," he replied. "And thank you."

As soon as he'd hung up, Selina put the phone down on the floor and look up at Damon. "Well this is an unexpected and fortuitous turn of events."

Just then, Elena walked into the room. "Caroline just called me," she announced. "Said she heard from her mother that something had happened to Tyler."

"I know," Selina was grinning again. "The mayor just called here and said Tyler had gone missing. He wanted to know if I knew where he was, you know, since we're 'so close' and all."

"Why would Tyler go missing?" Elena asked. "Do you think somebody kidnapped him?"

Selina burst out laughing. "What idiot in their right mind would kidnap a jackass like Tyler?"

"What if she's not in her right mind?" Damon asked.

"She?" Selina asked. "How in the world do you know it's a 'she'? Did you have anything to do with this? I wouldn't hate you if you did."

"No, I didn't." Damon shook his head. "Remember when we were at Lucy's house discussing what happened to your father? You let it slip that it was Tyler who staked him. She's probably going to kill him if he isn't dead already."

Elena's eyes widened and she turned to face Selina. "You told Lucy that Tyler staked your father?"

Selina shrugged. "Well she asked what happened to him and I didn't see any reason to lie to her."

"What's going on in here?" Stefan asked, coming into the room. "Am I missing something?"

"The mayor called," Selina said, holding up the phone. "Said, in a very panicky voice, that Tyler had gone missing. He wanted to ask if I'd heard anything from Tyler yesterday in regards to where he'd gone. I, of course, told him no, but said that if I heard anything, I'd let him know."

"And Caroline called me," Elena added. "Her mother told her the exact same thing."

"So what does this have to do with us?" Stefan asked. "Did the sheriff want us to help search?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "But isn't it wonderful that Tyler is missing?" she grinned.

"I'll tell you what it has to do with us," Damon told Stefan. "I think I know the person who has him. Or should I say, the vampire."

"Who is it?" Stefan asked.

"Elena's neighbor Lucy," Damon replied. "While we were at her house yesterday, Selina told him what happened to her father. And Lucy also happens to be the vampire who turned Matthew, in case you need reminding."

Stefan looked at Selina. "So she knows that Tyler is responsible for Matthew's death?"

Selina nodded. "Yes, she does know that. But you guys are just jumping to conclusions. We don't know for sure that Lucy's responsible."

"But we don't know that she _isn't_ responsible either," Stefan said. "And until Damon and I find out for certain whether or not Lucy is dangerous, I don't want either of you going near her," he said, looking at Selina and Elena.

"You can't do that," Selina scoffed, looking at him. "Stefan, you have absolutely no right to tell me what to do."

"Yeah, but I do," Damon said. "And I agree with him."

Selina gave a small growl and rolled her eyes. "Fine," she said after a little while.

Stefan looked at Elena. "All right," she said. "If it'll make you feel better, I promise not to go anywhere near Lucy or her house. And I'll tell Jeremy not to either."

"Thank you," Stefan said.

They left the room and Selina looked down at the notepad on her lap. While they'd been talking, she'd somehow managed to jot down some intelligent words. "How do you like the sound of this?" she asked Elena. "You wanted to know last time we met how it is that I'm still here. Well, it all has to do with my sister. She was a complete psycho bent on ruining my life, and she succeeded; she got me ill with scarlet fever to get me out of the way while she turned Damon and Stefan into vampires. After I got scarlet fever, one of the first people I saw of course was your father. And he cured me. How, you ask? By turning me. Just like you did with my father. He was sorry I was sick and didn't want me to die because I was so young. And to this day, I'm grateful to him." She paused and looked up. "What do you think?"

Elena nodded. "Not bad, even though you pour it on a bit thick at the end. It bends the truth a little bit, but it's not like you're lying.

"Exactly!" Selina said. "So, when are we going over to Lucy's?"

Elena put her hands on her hips. "We promised Damon and Stefan we wouldn't."

"Oh, come on!" Selina said. "It's not like Lucy's going to hurt _us_. Not with this cover story that makes her father sound like a hero. She's depressed about him, that's just what she needs."

Elena was looking doubtful and hopping from one foot to the other. Finally she said, "we'll go after school tomorrow. Will that work for you? If Damon asks, tell him we have a group project and won't be done 'til late."

Selina grinned. "Works for me."

* * *

The next day at school, no one could talk about anything besides Tyler's disappearance. Matt found Selina by her locker and handed her a note.

"What's this?" she asked him, opening it slowly.

"It's nothing," he said. "It's just that I heard about what happened with Tyler, and since he's your cousin and all, I bet you're going through something. This is just to let you know that I'm here for you. If you need anything at all, don't hesitate to ask."

Selina grinned and gave him a hug. "Thank you, Matt. That means a lot to me, especially since we haven't known each other that long."

"No problem." He let her go and then hurried away.

She put the note in her locker, and as she closed it, turned to find Caroline so close to her that they were practically nose to nose. "What is with you?" Caroline growled. "Why is it that every time I like a guy, they fall in love with you? First Mitch and now Matt."

Selina frowned. "Please step away, Caroline. Then we can talk about this like reasonable people. For one thing, your would-be boyfriend Mitch, he was my brother, okay? After our parents died, he practically raised me until I moved in with my uncle. And the whole reason why I did that was because Mitch had to go work in another town and moved there because the commute would be easier. He was going to get an apartment for the two of us after he'd saved enough money."

"Why do you keep talking about him in the past tense?" Caroline asked. "What happened to him?"

"He was killed in a car crash," Selina said. "The police called early one morning about three weeks ago."

"Oh, my god." Caroline gasped. "I had no idea." She paused. "I'm sorry."

Selina breathed deep and looked back up at her. "And about Matt, I think he saw Tyler being a jackass to me, so he's just trying to be nice. But trust me he's all yours if you want him." She held up her ring so Caroline had a good view of it. "I've already got one of my own and he's quite a catch." And with that, she grabbed the books out of her locker and strode away. Caroline watched her go for a moment, then turned to Elena who was standing behind her. "Did you hear all that?" she asked.

"Yes," Elena nodded.

"Was a word of it true?" Caroline asked.

"Well," Elena said carefully, "Mitch _is_ dead, she wasn't lying about that."

They met up in History, Elena and Selina once again sitting side by side. As Stefan walked past them to sit in the row behind, he looked at them for a long moment.

"What can we do for you?" Selina asked after awhile.

"Are you two planning to go and see Lucy after Damon and I told you not to?" he asked.

Selina and Elena looked at one another. "No," they said at the same time.

"_Really_" he asked again, this time putting his hands on the desk and putting his face nose to nose with Selina's.

Selina brought her palms down on the desk. "Oh, come on Stefan," she whispered. Lucy's not going to hurt us. You and Damon are just being paranoid! As far as Tyler is concerned, it's a case of a jerk getting his if she did take him, and your being fanciful if she didn't."

"Well when you go, what are you planning to tell her about how you're still here?" he asked Selina.

"It's actually really good, Stefan." Elena said. "She told it to me yesterday. It doesn't implicate anyone unnecessarily and it makes her father look like a hero."

"What is it?"

"I'm going to tell Lucy when she asks that I'm still here because my sister the psycho bitch got me fatally ill, and when I went and saw her father, he felt bad for me because I was so young and changed me to save my life, much like she did with my father."

Stefan was silent for a moment. Elena and Selina could tell that he really wanted to yell at them for still wanting to go to Lucy's after they swore they wouldn't, but something was holding him back. Finally, he said "I have to hand it to you: that story is a good compromise between what we want and what you want."

"Yep," Elena nodded. "Just enough truth so we aren't lying to her, but not the complete truth of course, so no one else gets hurt. So it's all right that we go and see Lucy after school? You'll make up some excuse for Damon so he won't worry?"

Stefan sighed. "All right," he said. "Just be back before dark."

Elena and Selina smiled at each other. Tomorrow, they would go and see Lucy.


	6. Thicker Than Water

Tyler sat propped up against the wall of what looked to him like a basement. It probably was, and it seemed as if it hadn't been cleaned out in quite sometime. There were still dusty jars of preserves piled high in one of the corners, and piles of broken knickknacks beside them. He grinned to himself as he shifted his wrists a little. He was in a pretty girl's basement tied to a pole. She was probably some sort of freak, but he didn't care, she was pretty. He'd be an idiot not to take advantage of this opportunity.

He thought he heard someone coming down the stairs and shifted positions again. After a couple seconds, she appeared in the doorway. "Comfy?" she asked.

"Sure," he replied, wincing and hoping that she didn't see it. Then he grinned. "I'm ready for fun when you are."

She laughed a little. "Don't you worry; we're going to have fun all right. But it'll have to wait until tonight. I might have people coming over later today." She paused. "Do you think you can be patient?"

Tyler nodded. "Don't you worry; I'll wait until the day I die if I have to."

Lucy grinned to herself. "That's good to know," she said, looking at him. At that moment, there was a distant chime of bells from upstairs. "I have to go see who's at the door," she told Tyler. "I'll be back later tonight."

"Can't wait," Tyler said, shifting position as she turned away and headed back up the stairs.

* * *

Lucy walked slowly to the front door and held onto the handle for a few moments, waiting to see if the doorbell rang again. If it did, she would answer it; if not, she'd leave it be. When it rang again, she opened it quickly. When she saw it was Elena and Selina on the other side, she started. "Hi!" she told them, opening the door the rest of the way. "I wasn't expecting you two to visit today."

"Well," Selina replied, "Are you interested in finding out how I'm still here?" she asked. "Because that's what we came to talk to you about."

"That's great," Lucy replied. "I highly doubt it's as boring of a story as Damon claims it is." She led them into the living room.

"No," Selina shook her head, taking a seat on the couch, Elena sitting beside her. "The reason that Damon stopped me from telling you before was that, well—"she paused, and looked at Elena who took her hand and nodded encouragingly. Selina took a deep breath. "The reason why Damon didn't want me telling you the story about my transformation was that it involves your father." It came out very quickly and afterward, she put her hands over her face as if Lucy was planning to hit her and she was waiting for the impact. When nothing happened, she removed her hands and looked back up at Lucy.

She was looking at Selina in surprise. "Your transformation into a vampire involves my father?" she asked.

"Yes, actually." Selina nodded. "He was the one who turned me."

Lucy shook her head, confused. "Why would he do that?"

Selina gave her a small smile. "For the same reason you turned my father: I got sick, I was young, and he just didn't think it was time for me to die yet." She paused. "I guess you could say he saved my life."

As soon as Selina finished speaking, she saw that Lucy had tears in her eyes. "It wouldn't surprise me that he'd do something like that for you," she said. "He _did_ love you very much." She paused. "You know, in a grandfatherly sort of way."

Selina nodded. "I know, I get that."

Lucy hugged her and then pulled back. "So that's how you're still here. How did you get sick? What did you have?"

"Scarlet fever," Elena replied.

"Oh, that's terrible." Lucy winced. "No wonder Father wanted to turn you. It was virtually impossible to live through something like that in those days."

Selina nodded. "I've always been grateful to him."

A few tears squeezed out of Lucy's eyes and tracked down her cheeks. "I'm so glad my father was able to save your life," she told Selina.

"Me too," Selina replied. "That'll be a big surprise for my sister when I finally catch up to her."

"Your sister?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah," Selina said. "My sister and I never really got along; we had different fathers of course, and she was always a total bitch. She had this handmaiden who had magical powers and they used them one night to make me ill with scarlet fever. Then my sister turned Damon and Stefan into vampires. It was really easy for her with me out of the way and all."

Lucy frowned. "Sounds like she had it in for you," she remarked.

"Oh," Selina said. "That's putting it mildly." She paused. "So now you know how I'm still here."

Lucy nodded. "Yes, I do. I just wish I knew where my father was. He hasn't come back yet."

Selina and Elena looked at one another for a long moment, then turned back to Lucy, who gazed from one to the other. "What's the matter?" she asked. "Is there something important that I don't know?"

"Well," Selina replied, "remember first and foremost that my father and yours erased all the memories I had of them when I was growing up so that I wouldn't go blabbing them to my mother. You _will_ remember that, won't you?" she asked.

"Of course," Lucy replied, looking surprised. "How could I forget it?"

"Anyway," Selina continued, "After your father turned me, I realized that there was something wrong with him. Even though, as you say, he had previously loved me in a more grandfatherly sort of way, he seemed to want something more romantic. When I came to my senses after my death, I found that the necklace Damon had given me as an engagement gift had gone missing and I was wearing a ring instead." She took her hand out of the pocket of her jeans and showed it to Lucy. She'd moved Dr. Stensrund's ring to her middle finger and replaced it with her wedding ring.

Lucy gasped. "That's my father's," she said in surprise.

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "It is. He gave it to me after he turned me. Then, he began teaching me the ways of vampirism."

"I bet he brought animals in from the woods," Lucy said. "That's what he did with your father."

Again, Selina and Elena looked at one another uncomfortably. "That's actually not true," Selina told her. "He started me out with people. Maybe because he wanted me to be stronger quicker, I don't know. Anyway, he would go out at night and snatch beggars from the streets and bring them up to the attic for me to practice on. He had me tied to a chair and when he freed me, I would rush them and drain them. I wasn't such a neat eater back then."

Lucy was looking shocked. "So that's where all the blood in the attic came from," she said. "It's not my father's at all."

"Nope," Selina said. "After a while on that routine, I left his house in the middle of the night and hid in the woods. I was scared of what I'd done; of the person I'd become. I thought of going back to Damon and Stefan's house, but realized that in the state I was in, I'd probably bring them down next." She laughed bitterly. "If I would've gone home then, I wonder what I would have found." She shook her head and continued. "After six months, I finally came across someone: my cousin Michael. He gave me a newspaper that detailed the first annual Founder's Day celebration. There was a big picture on the front page that proclaimed Damon and Stefan had escorted my sister to the party. It was then that I realized all becoming a vampire had cost me." She paused and looked at Lucy. She wanted to tell what happened next truthfully, but she could feel her nerves beginning to fail her. She looked at Elena, and Lucy did too.

"What happened after that?" Lucy asked.

"Well, um," Elena replied, squirming a little. "Once Selina finished reading the article, she went back to your father's house and showed it to him. Then they comforted each other and he urged her to leave Mystic Falls in order to get rid of the bad memories."

Selina's eyes widened. Elena was lying. She sighed. "I _did_ leave Mystic Falls eventually," she said. "I went on a tour of Europe and even lived in Paris for awhile. But not because your father encouraged me to; in fact, he probably would have wanted me to stay right here. But what happened when I got back to your father's house was that I-"

"Yes?" Lucy said, gazing at her expectantly.

Selina took a deep breath. "I was so mad that my sister had gone after my fiancé that I blamed your father and drained him and staked him. That's why he's not here now. It's not because he has a job in another town, or because the council took him away. It's because of me."

* * *

As Stefan entered the living room, Damon looked up at him. "You're alone," he observed. "That surprises me. I thought Selina would be with you."

"No," Stefan shook his head. "She and Elena have a school thing they have to do. They'll be back before dark, though. They promised me."

"Are you sure?" Damon asked. "I didn't hear anything from Selina and she usually tells me stuff like that."

"Yes," Stefan nodded. "I'm sure. Why would I lie about something like that?"

"Something doesn't seem right about this," Damon said. He turned around quickly. "She and Elena went to Lucy's, didn't they?" he said.

"Yeah, they did." Stefan nodded. "I told them it was okay as long as they were back before dark."

"Why the hell did you do that?" Damon asked. "We made them promise _not_ to go for a reason."

"They told me the story they were going to tell Lucy," Stefan replied. "It was a fib. They aren't telling her the truth."

"I don't believe this," Damon said, gazing at Stefan despairingly. "Let's get in the car. We're going to Lucy's house, and if Selina's dead, you're sharing Elena."

They drove to Lucy's house at breakneck speed and when they arrived, ran up the front steps, rapping on the door until someone came to answer it. When Selina opened the door, Damon ordered her back into the living room and next to Elena on the couch.

"I know what you're going say," Selina said before Damon could say anything. "But Stefan said we could come here as long as we were back before dark."

Damon nodded. "I know. That's what he told me."

Selina looked at Stefan and frowned. "I can't believe you sold us out. For someone who enjoys fibbing so much, you suck at it."

"I didn't sell you out," Stefan cried defensively. "Damon figured it out on his own!"

"You should have called me about this 'school project' of yours. Then maybe I wouldn't have caught on." Damon chided her.

"Damn," Selina said. "Maybe I should have."

"Where'd Lucy go?" Stefan asked.

Selina shrugged. "She said she had to take care of something in the basement. She left and hasn't come back since."

Just then, they heard a bloodcurdling scream from that very place. It sounded as if someone was in horrible pain. It went on for about five minutes, then stopped as quickly as it had started. About a minute later, Lucy came up the stairs. Her arms and shirt were covered in blood, but she made no move to hide the stains.

"Selina," she said sweetly. "Do you want to come downstairs with me? I have a little surprise for you."

"No!" Damon cried and rushed Lucy, putting his hands around her neck. To Selina's surprise, she pushed him off easily.

"Stop being such a fool," she snapped. "Do you honestly think I'd endanger someone who's as good as my own flesh and blood?"

Damon was breathing heavily. Selina looked at him for a moment before looking up at Lucy. "All right," she replied, and got up to follow Lucy down to the basement.


	7. In Broad Daylight

As Lucy led Selina down to the basement, Selina felt herself go cold. "What do you want from me?" she asked. "Do you want to make me scream too?"

Lucy paused and turned to face her. "Of course not; it's like I told Damon: you're as good as my own flesh and blood, so why would I want to hurt you?"

"Um, because I staked your father?" Selina guessed.

Lucy gave her a bitter smile. "You didn't do it on purpose, did you?"

Selina thought a moment. "Maybe a little. Like I said, I was angry and not thinking clearly."

"Exactly," Lucy nodded. "And because Matthew and my father had erased your memories of the good times we had together, you only remembered the bad ones."

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "That's about it."

"You said that before he turned you, my father was entertaining romantic notions about you and him. Why do you think that was?" Lucy asked.

Selina scoffed. "I don't have to guess. I know for a fact. See, like I said before, my sister wanted me out of the way, so she got me ill. But before she got me ill, she and her maid Emily went to your father's house when he was still loveable and trusting and messed with his mind so that he would believe he had romantic feelings for me and that I returned them."

"Wait," Lucy said. "Is that why he turned you? Because your sister messed with his brain to get him to believe the two of you could be romantically involved?"

"Yeah, it is," Selina told her. "I didn't tell you earlier because I didn't think you'd believe me." She paused and then went down the stairs the rest of the way, and when she reached the bottom, turned to face Lucy, holding out her arms away from her body. "You have the whole truth now. If you want to do away with me, go ahead."

"No," Lucy came down the stairs and stood next to her. "I don't want to do away with you at all, even if anyone else in my situation probably would."

"Why not?" Selina asked, putting her arms at her sides.

Lucy took a deep breath. "Because I loved your father. Almost as much as your mother did, probably. And now he's gone, so you're all I have left of him. If I killed you, I'd have nothing."

She smiled. "So, do you want to see the surprise now?" she asked, ushering Selina into the basement. The lights were off and everything was silent.

"Sure," Selina said. "What is it?"

Lucy laughed. "If I told you that, it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?"

She turned on the lights and motioned grandly at Tyler, who was unconscious and slumped over in a corner, still tied up, and covered in blood. "Tah-dah!"

"Tyler!" Selina cried. "Oh, God. So you're the one who took him!"

"Of course," Lucy nodded. "You said that this was the guy who killed your father in cold blood."

"Yep, that's him." Selina's voice had gone steely and her eyes cold. "You do good work, you know that?" She reached over and took Lucy's hand. They gazed at Tyler together for a moment, their eyes gleaming as he began to stir. His eyes opened and he moaned. He looked at them for a moment, and when he recognized Selina, he grinned.

"Hey there beautiful," he said, groaning quietly. "Did you come for a threesome?"

At that moment, Selina snapped. She rushed Tyler, going for his neck, making blood gush everywhere and causing him to scream again. Then she began to drink. She drank deeply from him. Deeper then she'd allowed herself in a long time. When she finally pulled away, he was pale as marble and his breathing was shallow.

"Feel better?" Lucy asked as Selina pulled away, putting a hand gently on her shoulder.

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "You know, I really do." She laughed. "I haven't fed like that since your father changed me. I stopped because I was scared, but now I think it's time to start again."

Lucy grinned. "I'm proud of you. Let's go get a drink, and then cruise around and see who we can pick up." She kicked Tyler's barely-alive body. "I don't think I can take much more of him." She looked at Selina. "What do you think we should do with him?" she asked. "Wipe his memory then send him back home to Daddy?"

"Oh, no." Selina said. "That would be too generous of an end for him."

"What did you have in mind?" Lucy asked.

"I don't know," Selina shook her head. "But the possibilities are endless, really." She paused, then her face lit up as an idea occurred to her. "I know! Let's wipe his memory, then you can keep him here to do your bidding!"

"You want _me_ to have him all to myself?" Lucy asked, surprised. "He wronged you too, you know."

"I know he did," Selina replied. "But I'm engaged, remember, and I don't think Damon would like it if I had another guy around the house, _especially _not Tyler."

"You have a point there," Lucy agreed. She looked down at Tyler's body with distaste. "All right. I'll keep him here. But I promise I won't be greedy with him."

Selina nodded. "That's very generous of you." She walked to the bottom of the stairwell and looked up at the door which was partly open. "I should probably be getting upstairs," she said. "They probably think you've killed me by now." She took the stairs two at a time, and when she reached the top, Damon, Stefan and Elena all stared at her. "You guys ready to go?" she asked. "I'll meet you at the car."

And before they could say anything, she made a run for it.

* * *

The ride back to the boarding house was silent and awkward. Stefan, Elena and Damon all wanted to know what had gone on between Selina and Lucy in the basement, but something told each of them to keep silent until Selina herself brought up the subject. But she didn't say anything for the rest of the day and finally, Damon brought it upon himself to ask as he and Selina were preparing for bed: "So," he said, trying to sound nonchalant. "What happened in Lucy's basement? Did she hurt you? Is that why you've been so quiet ever since we got back?"

"No!" Selina burst out laughing. "Of course she didn't hurt me. Didn't you hear a word she said to you? In fact, she made me feel better than I have in _years_."

"How was that?" Damon asked.

"Well," Selina replied, giggling like a little girl, "you know how Tyler's been missing? It turned out Lucy took him and he's been tied up in her basement for a week!"

"Really?" Damon asked, beginning to feel a little apprehensive. "Why would Lucy want to take Tyler?"

Selina stopped laughing. "Why do you think? Because he killed my father! It sure as hell wasn't because she wanted to have a good time with him, that's for sure." She growled. "Did you know that when we found him downstairs, he thought Lucy had brought me so that we could have a threesome?" she shuddered. "It's amazing how even when badly wounded and tied to a post, Tyler is still the biggest jackass on the planet."

"Did Lucy bite him again?" Damon asked. "Was that the second scream we heard?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "That was after _I _bit him. He stopped moving after that."

"You _killed_ Tyler?" Damon asked. He was really starting to be concerned now.

"No, silly." Selina shook her head. "I didn't kill him. I just fed off him till I _nearly_ killed him. Then I stopped and let him go." She turned and looked at the time that was blinking on the alarm clock. "We should probably go to bed now, don't you think?" she said, turning away from him before he could say a word and tucking herself in.

Instead of getting into bed with her, he waited until she was asleep and left the room in search of Stefan. When he knocked on Stefan's bedroom door, Damon was relieved that it was answered right away.

"What's the matter?" Stefan asked.

"I think something's very wrong with Selina," Damon said. "That second scream we heard coming from Lucy's basement? That was Tyler after Selina fed on him."

"Selina fed on Tyler?" Stefan asked.

"Yeah," Damon said. "I quote: 'that was after _I_ bit him. He stopped moving after that. I didn't kill him. I just fed on him until I _nearly_ killed him. Then I stopped and let him go'."

"You're kidding," Stefan told him. "That's seriously what she said?"

"Yep," Damon nodded. "Every word. I bet she'd admit to it gladly if you asked her." He shook his head. "I don't like this. Lucy did something to her down in the basement, even if Selina says nothing happened."

"So Selina fed on Tyler. Doesn't surprise me," Stefan replied. "It's not like he didn't have it coming."

"But she nearly killed him, and that concerns me," Damon replied. "I'm going to sleep in another room tonight and just hope she's calmed down by morning."

* * *

The next morning after he'd woken up, Damon headed back to their bedroom to check on Selina. To his surprise, she was up already. He went downstairs and found her talking to someone on the phone.

"So," she was saying, "when do you want to meet? For drinks over lunch hour? Or was it happy hour at Ringgold's? Yeah, sounds good. I'll be there. Bye." She hung up the phone and turned to face Damon directly. "Good morning," she said. "I have a lunch date, so you're going to have to scrounge up something on your own today."

"Who were you talking to?" Damon asked.

"Nobody," Selina said evasively, turning away. "Just a friend."

"Would this friend happen to be named Lucy Stensrund?" Damon asked.

Selina turned around quickly. "And if she is, what are you going to do about it?" she asked dangerously.

"I'm going to forbid you to go," Damon replied. "You aren't leaving the house today."

"Oh yes, I am." Selina began striding toward the stairs. "And you can't stop me."

Fortunately for Selina, the sheriff called for Damon just before she was supposed to leave, so it was easy for her to sneak out undetected. She met Lucy at Ringgold's bar and grill just outside Mystic Falls. They ordered a daiquiri and a pina colada each, drinking them slowly, then ordering two more subsequent rounds. Despite the fact that they were more then a little tipsy, the bartender let them drive home on their own. After only a mile, they got caught in a speed trap and stopped by a police officer. He stood next to the car and motioned for them to open the window. "What seems to be the trouble, officer?" Selina asked.

"Well, darlin'" he told her, "you and your friend here were going over eighty in an area with a fifty-mile speed limit."

"No, we weren't," Lucy replied. "You must be imaging things."

"Oh, really?" he told her. "My clock never lies."

"Well officer," Selina said. "Is there anything we can do to tell you how sorry we are?"

"Well," the officer wrote a ticket down on his pad. "You can pay this fine." He paused. "Just one more question: have the two of you been drinking?"

"Just as much as anyone else this time of day," Lucy replied.

The officer gave a humorless chuckle. "You know, you're really funny," he told her. "But a sense of humor doesn't change the fact that the two of you are intoxicated and driving. I'm going to have to take you down to the station."

"Oh, I don't think so," Lucy said. She stepped out of the car, grabbed the officer before he could move, and then ripped out his throat. As blood streamed out of him and onto the highway, she had her fill, then handed him over to Selina, who finished him off. They threw the dead man's body in the trunk of their car and dumped it in a thicket far away from the road. Then, Lucy drove Selina back to the boarding house and wished her good day.

The next morning, the headline of the Mystic Falls paper read: _Vampire Attack in Broad Daylight; Police Officer Dead._


	8. Getting a Time Out

"I think there's something you need to see," Stefan said to his brother as he brought the morning paper in and plunked it down on the kitchen table in front of Damon. Damon grabbed the paper and looked it over, feeling himself go cold.

"I don't believe this," he said, shaking his head and trying to control his breathing. "I told Selina yesterday that she wasn't to leave the house. And _this_ is exactly why." He hit the front page with the back of his hand, folded the paper back up and set it on the kitchen table. "I knew that Lucy was trouble. Selina was just fine before she came along."

"Why do you think she's really here?" Stefan asked.

Damon shook his head. "I have no idea, but I think that from now on, we should keep Selina away from her. One dead body and they already know that vampires are responsible. And there are pictures too. They'll probably come for Selina any time now. She's so lucky I'm in good with the sheriff."

"And that she's part Lockwood," Stefan reminded his brother. "Remember the promise that Michael made Selina: that his descendants will watch over her and protect her from harm while she's in town."

"Only decent thing that worm ever did," Damon commented. "Even so, just because the Lockwoods are sworn not to kill Selina doesn't mean anyone else won't try. So that's why we're putting her in timeout until you and I smooth this whole mess over and rid the council and the sheriff of any of the suspicions they might have as to the identity of the two vampires that killed that police officer."

"Putting her in time out?" Stefan asked. "You mean hiding her somewhere?"

"Yeah," Damon nodded. "It's for her own good. Let's go upstairs and get her, then put her in the basement and lock the door."

"You want to do it now?" Stefan asked.

"Yeah," Damon nodded. "She's still asleep; she won't put up a fight if we do it now."

Nodding at one another, they headed up the stairs. Heading into the master bedroom, they were relieved to see that Selina was still sound asleep. They gently picked her up, hoping that she wouldn't stir, and brought her down to the basement, which was full of an odd assortment of knickknacks, including, conveniently enough, an old brass bed with cream colored sheets and a lace pillowcase. They set her down gently, tucked her in, and left, shutting the door behind them.

When Selina finally woke up, she felt out of place. She sat up and looked around, realizing that she had no idea where she was. She blinked a couple of times and pinched herself to make sure she wasn't dreaming, but it quickly became clear that she was very much awake. _Where am I? _She thought to herself as she looked around. She hadn't come here herself, that was for certain. Last she remembered, she was in the master bedroom, tucking herself into bed. Had she sleepwalked? She'd never done it before, but there was always a first time for everything. She then began to feel the pain in her head. Had she been drinking last night and walked down here in a drunken stupor?

A knock at the door interrupted her musings. "Come in," she called, hoping it was someone who could tell her how she got here.

"Morning," Damon greeted her as he entered the room, glass in hand. "Seems like you had quite the night last night. That's why I brought this." He gently shook the glass at her, then walked over to the bed and handed it over.

She gazed at it a moment. "This is what I think it is, right?" she asked.

"Of course," Damon nodded. "What else would it be?"

"Do you _promise?_" Selina asked.

"Yes," Damon replied. "I promise.

"All right," Selina drank it down. Suddenly, she began to feel strange, weak, light-headed. She looked at Damon and frowned as the glass fell to the floor and shattered. "There was vervain in there, wasn't there?" she asked as she groaned and leaned back onto the pillow.

"It's for your own good," Stefan said as he entered the room and showed her the paper. "We don't want this to happen again."

"How could you do it?" Damon asked her, sitting next to her on the bed. "We work so hard to make sure we _don't_ get caught, and then you very possibly blow our cover for good in the space of five seconds."

"_I_ hardly did anything," Selina said quietly. "Lucy was the one who ripped the guy's throat out. I just finished him off."

"Why?" Stefan asked.

Selina was struggling to speak. "He stopped us for speeding when we were coming back from the bar, and then wanted to take us down to the police station and book us for being intoxicated while driving. I guess Lucy wasn't too keen on that idea."

"If you would have been at the police station, you could have called and I would have come and bailed you out." Damon told her.

Selina nodded, but was too weak to speak anymore.

"I think we'll just leave you here until the two of us sort things out," Damon said, looking at her. "I think I'll start with the sheriff."

"Good idea," Stefan said. "I'll stay here, and once you get back, I'll see if I can do anything about Lucy."

Damon nodded and headed out the basement door without another word.

As Selina stared at Stefan, she reverted to her mental voice: _how long do I have to stay in here?_ She asked him.

He sighed. "As long as it takes for you to get better," he said gently.

Selina frowned. _Better? But I'm not sick! There's absolutely nothing wrong with me._

"You helped kill a police officer," he reminded her. "That's not normal behavior for you. Or anyone."

Selina shrugged. _If I promise not to do it again, can I go back upstairs?_

Stefan shook his head. "I don't think it's that simple. Lucy is a bad influence on you. As long as you hang around with her, there's a chance that something bad could happen again, and we don't want to risk that. So until we convince Lucy to leave town and calm things down with the sheriff and the council, you're going to stay down here."

She licked her lips. _What about when I need to eat?_ She asked.

"Don't worry about that," Stefan told her. "I'll bring you stuff."

Selina groaned. _But I want _real_ stuff_!

Stefan gave her a grim smile. "Well remember that next time you get it in your head to do something stupid."

Selina stuck her tongue out at him and he bit his lip on a smile. "Do you need something now?" he asked.

Selina shook her head. _I'm good._

"All right," he said, standing up and taking a small bell from atop an ancient-looking dresser. "Take this and ring if you need anything. I'm going upstairs."

_What am _I_ supposed to do? _Selina frowned.

"Think," Stefan told her. "Think long and think hard so that we never have to go through this again."

* * *

Damon pulled his car over to the side of the road and looked at the picture in the paper of where the police officer's body had been found. He had to admit Lucy and Selina had picked a very good place to dump him. He finally figured out where it was and started the car again. When he arrived at the thicket, he found the Sheriff and her men examining the crime scene. "Hello," he called. "Can I be of any help?"

"Damon!" Sheriff Forbes turned around at the sound of his voice and smiled at him. "Not at this point, but maybe later."

Damon got out of his car and strolled up next to her. "Have you found anything that might tell you the identity of the vampires who did this?" he asked.

"No," the sheriff shook her head. "Even the picture they stuck in the paper is grainy." She paused and looked at Damon. "Do you have any idea who they might be?" she asked hopefully.

He shook his head. "No idea." He paused. "Now about this vampire theory: Are we absolutely positive that vampires committed this crime?"

"Well," the sheriff said, "the officer's throat was ripped out and there wasn't much blood left in the body."

"But other things could have ripped his throat out," Damon countered. "He could have been the victim of a wild animal attack."

"We thought about that," the sheriff admitted. "But it didn't seem quite right."

"But why would vampires attack in broad daylight?" Damon asked. "I thought they were creatures of the night."

"I don't know," Sheriff Forbes replied. "Some of them probably _are_ crazy enough to pull a stunt like that and to risk getting caught."

"I saw some suspicious behavior at a house near ours," Damon told her. "If it _was_ vampires who committed this murder, I think I can handle it so this won't happen again. I promise you won't lose anymore men."

The sheriff smiled at him. "Thank you. And you be careful; they've already killed once. They might try and do it again."

Damon nodded. "Thank you, Liz. I will." And with that, he turned away, got back into his car, and drove off.

When he arrived back at the boarding house and went down to the basement, he found Selina with her bell and grinned. "You look comfy," he told her.

_I hate you_, she thought to him.

"No you don't," Damon said, ruffling her hair. "Because I just saved your life."

_What do you mean?_

"Because the sheriff and her men were out looking for the vampires who killed the police officer and I convinced her to let me handle the perpetrators. She won't be snooping around here and coming for you with a stake anytime soon."

_Really?_ Selina was looking at him in surprise now. _I thought you would have turned me over. To teach me a lesson for being stupid and all._

He sat down next to her. "I won't deny that getting drunk and helping kill someone in broad daylight was stupid, but if I turned you in and let you be killed yourself, I'd look kind of strange showing up in a Vegas wedding chapel without a bride, wouldn't I?" he asked her.

She nodded. _I think so. _She paused. _Can I go upstairs now?_

Damon shook his head. "Not yet. Stefan hasn't talked with Lucy. But I _will _bring you some clothes if you want to get dressed."

Selina began to nod, and then paused. _I don't think that's a good idea._

"Why not?"

_Well, I'm not really strong enough to dress myself. You'd have to help me, and I really don't think that's something I want us to experience. _Selina was gazing at him intently now.

"Are you serious?" Damon was fighting the urge to laugh. "I've seen you naked. How is helping you get dressed worse?"

_I don't know. It just is._

Damon looked heavenward. "Fine," he said. "Stay in your pajamas all day. I don't really care."

Just then, the door to the basement opened and Stefan entered with Elena coming in behind him. When Damon saw her, he stood up. "Elena, it's so good you're here."

"Thanks," Elena replied, looking at him strangely. "It's very kind of you to say."

"I'm not just saying it to be nice," he told her. "Selina's in her pajamas and wants to change into normal clothes but is too weak to do it on her own. I offered to help, but apparently there's something wrong with that."

"Well you're a guy," Elena told him. She gazed at Selina. "What happened to her?"

"I gave her vervain to keep her down here," Damon told Elena. "After what happened to that police officer, I didn't really want to risk her being out and about."

"Poor kid," Elena looked at Selina sympathetically. "Do want me to help you get in some clothes?"

Selina nodded.

"All right," Elena turned. "Would one of you run upstairs and grab something?"

Damon nodded and ran upstairs, returning a few minutes later with jeans, a raspberry-colored top, and a pair of white socks. Elena ushered the two of them out of the room and she and Selina worked on getting the nightgown off and the clothes on.

_I feel like such a child._

"That's weird," Elena said. "I didn't know you could communicate like that."

_I'm only doing this because thanks to the vervain, I'm not really strong enough to do anything, even talk._

Once Selina was dressed, she lay back down on the pillows.

"You two can come back in now," Elena called to Damon and Stefan.

They reentered the room, and Stefan looked at his watch. "I'm going to go look for Lucy," he said. "With luck, I should find her right away." He turned and walked toward the stairs, pausing and turning before going up. "Selina," he said, "where do you think she might be now?"

_Try her house,_ Selina said._ Or go to the Grill and watch at the bar. She goes there to drink a lot_.

"Thanks," Stefan said, and headed up the stairs.


	9. The Loose Cannon

Stefan stopped by Lucy's house first and looked in the front door. When he saw there was no one inside and no car parked in the driveway, he headed to the Grill, hoping that Selina was right and he'd find Lucy drinking at the bar. When he arrived and stepped inside, he didn't see her right away, but then some of the enthusiastically dancing crowd cleared away and he saw her spinning around on a bar stool next to three empty glasses. He strode toward her and put an arm around her shoulder to stop her and turn her to face him. "Hi Lucy," he greeted her gently.

She stared at him, blinked, and then burst into a fit of giggles. "Hi there, buddy," she said to him. "You wanna buy me a drink?"

Stefan sat down and motioned at the empty glasses. "I seriously think you've had enough tonight."

She became serious and pushed back straggling hair from her face. "You know," she said, "you're wrong. I haven't had enough at all."

"What do you mean?" Stefan asked her. "From the looks of things, you're so trashed you can probably barely stand up."

"I can too." With that, Lucy stood up, and nearly fell to the floor, but Stefan caught her just in time.

"Why do you think you haven't had enough?" he asked her again.

She sighed and he noticed that she'd been crying; mascara was running down her cheeks and smudges of black surrounded her eyes. "I still hurt," she said. "And I want the pain to go away. But no matter how much I drink, it never does."

"What hurts?"

Lucy sniffled. "My father's gone; Matthew's gone. I'm all alone." She paused and looked at him intently. "Have you ever been hurt so badly that you'd do anything you could to make the hurt go away?"

Stefan nodded. "I've had my share of moments like that." He paused as the bartender ambled toward him and asked if he wanted anything. He declined the offer and the man walked away. As soon as he was gone, Stefan turned back to Lucy and she continued.

"I came here to Mystic Falls to find Matthew because I thought he'd be here. I knew he came back every couple of years to be reminded of his wife. I thought that eventually, I'd show up, he'd see me; we'd fall in love, and live happily ever after. Do you think I'm stupid for thinking that?"

"No," Stefan shook his head. "I think that you got attached to him, and figured since his becoming a vampire took him away from Selina and her mother, he was as lonely as you and for that reason, the two of you would hit it off. There's nothing wrong with that."

Lucy sighed. "Going after a married man; what was I thinking?" she shook the bottom of one of the glasses which still had a little left in the bottom and down it.

"How do you feel about Selina's mother?" Stefan asked.

"Why?" Lucy asked him curiously.

"Well," Stefan replied, "I just wondered if you ever harbored any resentment toward her because she had Matthew first."

"No," Lucy said, looking at him in genuine surprise. "That never occurred to me." She thought a moment. "Maybe if there would have been a chance for Matthew to recover and go _back_ to his wife then I would have been resentful, but there was no chance. Father told Matthew in no uncertain terms that he was going to die and that there was no other alternative. I felt sorry for his wife, never getting to tell him goodbye." She paused. "Why should I be resentful of her when she loses him without closure and I get to be the one to tell him goodbye?"

Stefan shrugged. "I don't know. I was just curious." Stefan paused. "Now about what happened with the police officer…"

"Oh," Lucy stood up from the barstool and staggered, managing to stay upright this time. "Is that the whole reason why you're here?" she asked. "I was wondering when you were going to get to it." she paused. "He was in the way," she said. "I had every right to kill him."

Stefan frowned. "And did you see that there was an article about the attack in the daily paper? The sheriff and her men were out and about looking for the vampires who committed the murder."

"_Really?_" Lucy asked, grinning and sitting back on the barstool. "They must be really inept if they haven't figured it out by now."

"Are you serious?" Stefan asked, surprised by Lucy's sudden change in mood. "Do you really _want _to get caught and staked?"

"Of course not," Lucy replied, laughing and looking at Stefan as if he were a complete moron. "But it's always a thrill when you know there might be a chance."

"Are you insane?" Stefan asked.

"No," Lucy shook her head. "It's just that after so many years, I've run out of novel ways to amuse myself."

Stefan frowned. "If you want to endanger yourself, that's your business. Leave Selina out of it."

Lucy laughed again. "Sweet, naïve, young Stefan; you think you know Selina, but you don't. She has so much potential that is just being wasted. You should have seen her in my basement with Tyler. She took to him like a duck to water."

"You're wrong," Stefan said. "Selina's a good person and I won't let her get staked because of you." He paused. "For someone who loved her father so much and is ruing the day she let him go, you're sure being careless with the only bit of him that you have left. If Selina is killed, you really _will _be all alone; and you'll have no one to blame but yourself."

Lucy scoffed. "Please, Selina is _way_ too smart to get herself staked. And guilt-tripping me isn't going to work. I've heard it all before." She motioned to the bartender, who brought her another drink. "You want anything?" she asked him.

Stefan shook his head. "I didn't want to have to resort to this," he said. "But since you obviously have no intention of reforming your behavior and no qualms about putting the town and Selina at risk, I want you to leave."

"And what will you do if I don't?" Lucy asked. "Are you going to have me run out?"

"Yes," he said.

She put the glass down. "Here's the deal; I'll leave Selina alone if you leave me alone. We'll just ignore each other."

Stefan started shaking his head, but then stopped. Just because he couldn't deal with Lucy anymore didn't mean that Damon, Selina, and possibly Elena couldn't keep an eye on her. "All right," he said. "I'll leave you alone if you leave Selina be and don't encourage her to kill anyone else."

"Fine," Lucy told him. "I promise."

He watched her finish her drink and then left the Grill. Even though Lucy had promised, he was definitely still worried about her. She was a loose cannon, definitely: nice one minute, poison the next. She seemed to be genuinely upset about Matthew and her father, but why she was so intent on bringing out Selina's dark side, he had no idea. Pondering this, he got in his car and drove back to the boardinghouse, pulling out his phone at a stoplight to let Damon know it was safe for Selina to come back upstairs.

* * *

As soon as Damon arrived in the basement with that piece of news, Selina was up and running. "God, it feels so good to be able to _move_," she crowed once she reached the top. She turned around to look at Damon who was coming up behind her. "Did Stefan say he was on his way back?" she asked.

"Yes," Damon nodded. "He's in the car and on his way back."

"Good," Selina replied. "That means he must have found Lucy right away."

"And convinced her to leave town," Damon added. "Things will be so much simpler once she's gone," he said thoughtfully. "Then _I_ can go back to being the one the council fears without knowing it."

Selina chose to ignore that last remark. "I'm kind of going to be sad to see her go," she said.

"Seriously?" Damon asked. "_Why_? She made you kill someone!"

Selina frowned at him. "What makes you so self-righteous all of a sudden? I bet you've killed a ton of people and not given it a second thought. What makes it so wrong when _I_ do it?"

"Well," Damon replied, "because, um-" he paused.

"If you're answer is 'because you're a girl and are thus responsible for keeping me on the level,' I'm going to hurt you," she told him.

Damon gave her a wicked grin. "I'd love to see you try."

Selina gave a humorless laugh. "You obviously didn't see Doctor Stensrund's body after I finished with him. I highly doubt you'd want to end up like that."

Damon sobered. "I forgot about that."

"Obviously," Selina replied. She put her hands on her hips. "Don't think I'm going to forget that stunt you pulled with the vervain," she told him. "I really don't like that you'd do something like that to me knowing as you do what happened to turn me."

He sighed. "I'm sorry about that, all right? Excuse me for being concerned about your welfare."

"If that's why you wanted me to stay inside, you could have said that and I would have listened," Selina told him.

"I _did_ say that and you went out anyway," Damon shot back.

"You didn't _tell_ me anything! You ordered me about like some sort of male chauvinist freak! And then you have the gall to be offended that I didn't listen to you?"

They were facing each other angrily now. Damon opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off by the sound of the front door opening. "I'm back," Stefan called. He found them and looked at their faces. "What happened here?" he asked.

"Ask_ he_r," Damon said. "She started it."

Before either Selina or Stefan could reply, he stalked off in the direction of Selina's old bedroom. "You'll be sleeping alone tonight," he called to Selina over his shoulder. "But I won't worry about your being lonely. Your ego will keep you company."

"So the two of you had a fight while I was gone," Stefan said.

"Yep," Selina replied. "I expressed some anger about your brother's method of keeping me here today because of how I was turned, and he told me that since it was for my own good, I had no business being upset about it." She paused. "I won't have a problem being by myself tonight. If he thinks that leaving me alone is a punishment after the way he acted, then he's sorely mistaken."

* * *

As soon as Stefan was gone, Lucy scanned the room, her eyes once again finding the person she'd been watching all evening. He'd been playing pool by himself, pausing every so often to drink from a Coke that was situated on a nearby table. After hitting the last ball into one of the corner pockets, he put the cue down on the table and began organizing the balls for another game. Lucy got up from the barstool and sauntered unsteadily towards him. "Hi," she said. "You're Jeremy, right?" she asked. "One of my new neighbors?"

At the sound of Lucy's voice, Jeremy lost control of the pool balls, sending them scattering every which way. "Yes," he said, turning around to face her.

"Well," Lucy replied, "I was wondering if you'd mind doing me a favor. See, I've had about five drinks tonight and I don't think I should be driving. Would you mind escorting me home?"

Though his mind was screaming at him to say yes, he could only just stare at her. He finally managed to snap out of it, blushing furiously at her expectant gaze. "s-sure," he said finally. "I walked because it was so nice tonight. It wouldn't be any trouble at all for me to see you home safely."

Lucy grinned as he led her out the door. "You're too kind," she told him.

He smiled back. "It's nothing, really."


	10. Puppy Love

When Jeremy and Lucy arrived at Lucy's house, he walked her to the door, and then turned around to head out. "Goodnight," he said to her.

"Just a minute," she told him. "Can you come in? I want to thank you for what you did for me."

"I-I have to go," he stammered. "I promised my aunt I'd be back by eleven and it's ten-fifty-five right now."

Lucy smiled knowingly. "That's not really why you have to go, is it? No one who's as cool as your aunt seems to be would make you go home this early."

"Actually, she's trying to be more responsible," Jeremy countered. "And it's Sunday, so I have school tomorrow."

"You seem so tense," Lucy told him, taking his hand and guiding him into the living room. The minute she touched him, he loosened up and lost all resolve to leave the house. "Why don't you relax a minute? We can have a little chat."

"All right," he said, sitting down on the couch. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Well," she said, "I watched you all night and let me tell you something. I've been with quite a few men and frankly you fascinate me."

"I do?" he asked. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

She laughed. "It's a good thing, silly." She stood up. "Where are my manners?" she asked. "Are you hungry?" she looked back at Jeremy. "Can I get you anything?"

"Sure," he said.

"What are you in the mood for?" she asked.

He shrugged. "I don't know. Something sweet, maybe."

She smiled. "That doesn't surprise me." She left for the kitchen and Jeremy heard her rifling around in the cupboards. "I've got cookies," she called. "And I just bought a few bags of candy from the store. They were having one of those 3 for $3 deals and I just couldn't resist. And ice cream. I've got that too."

Jeremy thought a moment. "Bring out all the cookies please," he yelled back.

"You got it," she answered, coming back a few minutes later lugging a cardboard box that was filled to the brim with bags and boxes of cookies: Oreos, Milanos, and Chips Ahoy were just the beginning.

Jeremy grabbed a bag and tore it open. "I'm impressed. I don't think I've ever met a woman with as big a sweet tooth as you."

Lucy smiled. "My father owned a candy store so I grew up around sweets and I guess I just never grew out of them." She watched in amusement as he finished his second bag of cookies and moved on to a third.

"Aren't you going to have any?" he asked, gesturing at the box.

She shook her head. "Not right now, no. But I'll be eating later, don't you worry about me. Do you need any milk?"

He nodded. "Sure, why not?"

As soon as she got up to get it, Jeremy's phone rang. "Hello?" he said.

"Jeremy, where are you?" It was Jenna's voice on the other end of the line. "You were supposed to be home ten minutes ago!"

"I ran into Lucy at the Grill and she was a little drunk so she asked me to take her home," he replied. "And then she wanted to thank me."

There was an exasperated sigh. "Tell her 'you're welcome' and get your butt home. You have school tomorrow, remember? And that math test that you promised you wouldn't flunk."

"All right, all right," he replied. "I'll head out in just a minute."

Just as he said this, Lucy entered the room. "Who are you talking to?" she asked.

"My aunt," Jeremy said. "She wants me to go home now."

"Well here," Lucy said. "Let me have your phone and I'll see if I can't convince her to be reasonable."

Jeremy handed it over, eager to see what Lucy was going to say.

Lucy put the phone up to her ear. "Hello? Jenna?"

"Hi! Jenna said in surprise. "I didn't expect you to be on the other end of the line."

"Well, I just wanted to apologize for keeping Jeremy out past his curfew on a Sunday night, but could he stay just a little bit longer? We're having a snack and he's not quite done yet."

"All right," Jenna said. "He can finish it. But as soon as he's send him straight home, would you please?"

"Of course," Lucy told her. "Thank you so much, Jenna. Goodbye." She closed the phone and handed it back to Jeremy.

He was grinning. "That was good," he said. "I didn't think it would convince her at all, but it did."

Lucy grinned. "Well I have my ways. Now why don't you drink your milk?"

"All right," he said, gulping it down. He set the glass down on the table. "Are you _sure_ you don't want anything?" he asked her.

"Well, now that you mention it, I _am_ a little hungry," she told him.

"Well what can I give you?" he asked.

Lucy leaned forward, and as she put her lips on his neck, she could feel him relax. She wasn't going to have any difficulties. She began giving him little kisses and then, finally, her fangs came down, and she bit, drinking deeply from him. After she was done, she let him go and he flopped back against the chair. "Are you okay?" she asked him.

"Sure," he said, sounding dazed.

"Now, you aren't going to remember this, are you?" she told him. Her voice had become forceful and commanding.

"No," he said mechanically.

"If anyone asks," Lucy continued, "you say that we had a wonderful evening together and that we can't wait to do it again."

"Yes," he said.

"All right." She cleared her throat. "I promised your aunt that once we were finished, I'd send you home." She took his hand and pulled him up from the couch and leading him to the door. "Do you need me to walk with you?" she asked.

"No, no. I'll be fine."

"Okay." She watched him go and then shut the door behind him. She'd made a good choice; that was for sure.

When the door opened, Jenna and Elena started. They were both sitting at the kitchen table, with coffee cups in hand. As Jeremy entered the kitchen, they began peppering him with questions about how things went.

"It was great," he said. "We had a wonderful evening together and can't wait to do it again. Now I'm really tired, so I'm going upstairs to sleep."

"Goodnight," Jenna said.

"Don't forget to set your alarm!" Elena called after him. As soon as he was gone, they sat back down at the table. "Does he seem a bit off to you?" Elena asked.

"A little maybe, but it's probably nothing to worry about. His first time with an older woman had to have been a little intimidating. From the looks of things, she wore him out."

"I guess," Elena replied. She finished what was in her coffee cup and looked at the clock. "I think I'm going to call it a night too," she said.

"All right, see you in the morning." Jenna gave her a hug and Elena went to her bedroom for the night.

* * *

"Are you okay?" Elena asked when she found Selina at her locker the next day. "It seems like there's something wrong. Do you want to talk about it, or should I mind my own business?"

Selina grabbed some books and slammed the locker door shut. "Damon and I are having a fight," she said. "He won't admit that what he did with the vervain was wrong and I won't speak to him until he does."

"I admit that _was_ a little low," Elena said. "But he had good intentions."

Selina scoffed. "That's what _he _says."

"Oh, come on!" Elena said. "No offense or anything, but I really think you're being petty right now. You love him." She took Selina's hand that had the engagement ring on it and held it up. "See? That's why you're still wearing this and haven't stomped it into the dirt yet."

Selina looked at it. "That doesn't prove anything."

"All right," Elena said. "Say you don't love him."

She watched as Selina looked at her balefully but said nothing. "You can't say it, can you?" Elena asked.

Selina shook her head, and the two of them began walking toward the history classroom. "I can't, and it's really annoying!"

"Come on," Elena told her. "You spent a hundred and forty-five years waiting for him to come back to you. Now he is and the two of you are engaged. Are you so proud that you're willing to throw that all away?"

"No," Selina huffed. "I guess not. I'll tell him I'm sorry when I get back tonight."

"Good for you," Elena said as they sat down.

"Yeah, whatever," Selina told her.

"By the way," Elena said, "my brother was at Lucy's house last night after he brought her back from the Grill because she was too wasted to go home by herself, and when we saw him again, he was acting really strange."

"Strange how?" Selina asked.

"Well," Elena replied, "he was very pale, he had this blank expression on his face and when he talked, his voice was mechanical, no expression whatsoever."

"Did you get a look at his neck?" Selina asked.

Elena's eyes widened. "You think Lucy fed off him?"

"Well," Selina answered, "since I haven't seen your brother, I can't be sure, but it sounds like a definite possibility."

Just then, Alaric entered the room. "All right everybody, today, instead of me giving a long-winded lecture that no one is going to listen to, we have a guest speaker from the state historical society to give a talk about Mystic Falls way back when. And I want all of you to be nice to her." He motioned out the door, and to Selina and Elena's surprise, Lucy entered the room.

"Hello, everyone!" she said brightly. "Are you all ready to be turned on by history?"

Selina passed Elena another note: _From the looks on the boys' faces when Lucy entered the room, that won't be a problem._

Elena read it and tried not to snort.

Lucy began to talk and was interrupted by the door opening.

"Sorry I'm late, everyone." Stefan entered the room and headed for the empty chair next to Elena. When he was seated, he looked up at the front of the room and his eyes widened when he saw Lucy standing near the chalkboard. "What's _she_ doing here?" he whispered to Elena.

"She's helping us get 'turned on' by history," Selina supplied. "And Elena says that her brother was at Lucy's house last night and came back acting really weird. I'm thinking that maybe she fed off him."

Stefan looked at Elena. "Don't worry. We'll find your brother after class and get a handle on the situation."

Elena nodded and the three of them stayed quiet, listening to Lucy lecture.

After Lucy finished talking and class was let out, Stefan, Selina and Elena were surprised to find Jeremy standing outside the classroom door holding a big bouquet of red roses.

"When did you get those?" Elena asked her brother.

"I snuck out during study hall," he said. "Do you think Lucy will like them?"

"Sure," Elena replied, talking to distract him while Selina and Stefan discreetly looked him over. "What woman doesn't like getting flowers?" She looked at Stefan and Selina who were mouthing that it was okay to let him go. "Why don't you go in there and give them to her before she leaves?"

"All right," Jeremy said. "Wish me luck!" Elena smiled at him and he disappeared into the classroom, shutting the door behind him.

"So what's the verdict?" Elena asked as soon as he was gone.

"He's definitely been bitten," Selina told her. "I'm sorry."

"I don't understand how this could happen," Elena said. "Lucy started out so nice!"

"Well, she's grieving," Stefan said. "Don't forget about the police officer. Lucy was the one who got him too."

"But he was killed!" Elena exclaimed. "We have to get Jeremy away from her right now, before she kills him too!"

"Don't worry, we'll handle it," Selina told her. "I'll just meet Lucy somewhere, we'll have a couple of drinks, and I'll convince her to leave your brother alone. She listens to me."

"Actually that's not going to happen. I made her promise to leave you alone." Stefan told Selina.

"What?!" Selina exclaimed. "What did you do that for?"

"Because Mystic Falls doesn't need anymore dead police officers," Stefan said through his teeth.

"Great," Selina sighed. "First your brother and now you. I appreciate the two of you trying to keep me safe and everything, but all you're really doing is sticking yourself in where you don't belong." She looked up at the clock. "I've got to go to my next class. I'll see you at home."

And she stalked off in the direction of the art wing, leaving Stefan and Elena standing alone.

* * *

The first thing Selina did when she got back to the boarding house was look for Damon. She found him in the living room, staring into the empty fireplace. "What's up, stranger?" she asked.

He turned around. "Oh, you're talking to me again. Isn't that wonderful?" he said sarcastically.

Selina ignored him and came up next to him. "I came to say I'm sorry for the way I acted, but if you're going to be like that, it can wait."

"No." he stood up "Why the change of heart?"

"Well," Selina answered, "Elena and I were talking and she made me realize that we've gone through way too much to throw out our relationship because of one fight. She also said that I was being petty and told me that if I was _really_ mad at you and wanting to end things, I'd be able to say I didn't love you with conviction. I tried really hard, but I just couldn't."

"_Really?_" Damon said, grinning slyly. "I'll have to thank her sometime."

"And there's another thing: Lucy's after Elena's brother and Elena needs all the help she can get. I figure now isn't the time to be wasting our energies fighting when more important things need to be dealt with."

"Lucy is after Elena's brother?" Damon asked.

"Yep," Selina said. "Elena told Stefan and me that Jeremy brought Lucy home from the Grill because she was too drunk to go on her own and when he got back home, he was very pale, his eyes were glassy, and he was talking really funny. And then when Stefan and I checked him out today, he definitely had bite marks on his neck. He also brought Lucy roses."

Damon rolled his eyes. "Puppy love. How quaint."

"So," Selina told him. "Now that I've poured out all my heart and soul, is there anything you'd like to say to me?"

"Yes," Damon replied, taking her hand. "I'm sorry for incapacitating you with vervain when there were other ways that would have been less traumatizing for you."

Selina nodded. "All right. And I'm sorry I called you a male chauvinist freak."

He laughed a little. "I forgive you. Have you eaten yet today?"

"No," Selina said as the two of them left the house. "I was hoping you'd ask."

* * *

Jeremy met Lucy again a few nights later because she needed help moving furniture so she could paint the living room. After they'd moved the couches, they decided to take a break. Lucy got him some lemonade and watched him drink it.

"Aren't you going to get anything for yourself?" he asked.

"Later," Lucy smiled and began running her fingers through his hair. "You know, you have really nice hair," she commented. "I like it longer like this."

"Thanks," he said, beginning to relax again. She didn't waste time. She bit him and he shuddered. She was so involved with drinking from him that she forgot she'd left the basement door open. She didn't hear Tyler drag himself up the stairs with the little strength he had. And she didn't notice that he witnessed the whole thing.


	11. Rescue

Despite the fact that Stefan had told her specifically _not_ to go to Lucy's house, that was the first thing Selina did a few days after she and Damon made up. She took Damon's car and drove there without anyone else knowing about it. Once she arrived, she parked the car in the street and strode up the front steps to knock on the doorbell. Then, she waited for Lucy.

When the door opened, Lucy, wearing a bathrobe, looked at her in surprise. "Hello, Selina," she said. "I wasn't expecting you to come here after what Stefan made me promise."

"Well," Selina shrugged. "Stefan's not really the boss of me. He and Damon just like to think they are. Can I come in?"

Lucy blinked. "Oh, sure!" She stepped away from the door and motioned for Selina to enter. "Is there a specific reason you came by?"

"_Well_," Selina replied, "I actually came to ask you about Jeremy Gilbert."

"Really?" Lucy replied innocently. "What about him?"

"You've been feeding off him, haven't you?" Selina asked.

Lucy nodded. "I have, but it's not like he hasn't been willing, my dear. You saw how he was when I was at your school."

"Come on, Lucy," Selina chided her. "You know this isn't right. You're taking advantage of the fact that that poor boy has a crush on you and using him for your own selfish purposes."

"Wanting to keep myself from dying isn't a selfish purpose, Selina," Lucy said. "You know without blood in our systems, we'd all die."

"There are other ways." Selina told her, voice shaking.

"Please," Lucy laughed. "Don't tell me you've never drank human blood. You don't seem like one of those."

"I _have_ drunk from people," Selina told her. "And just as you say, it was to stop myself from dying. To stop the pain. But I've never once drawn in a man who was fond of me and used him like that. That's what my sister did with Damon and Stefan and now you're no better. You make me ill."

Just then, Jeremy came into the living room. "Are you coming back to bed?" he asked Lucy groggily.

"Jeremy!" Selina said, standing up and going over to him. "You shouldn't be here. You should go home."

"I don't want to go home," Jeremy said, turning to her. He was wearing an awful, blank expression. "I like it here."

"See?" Lucy said when Selina turned to her. "He doesn't seem to mind. Why should you?"

"Let. Him. Go." Selina advanced on Lucy, but never even touched her. Suddenly, a pistol shot rang out and Lucy fell to the ground. Selina turned to see who had fired it and was surprised to see Tyler on his knees near the couch. "Didn't expect to see you," Selina told him. She looked down at Lucy. "You know that's not going to keep her down for very long."

"I have more bullets," Tyler said, cocking the gun, aiming it at Lucy's body and pretending to fire. "I can always hit her again if she stirs."

"Why are you doing this?" Selina looked at him.

"Well, I _did_ see her first," Tyler said reasonably. "It's not fair that Gilbert should get to have all the fun."

Selina laughed bitterly. "You call getting your blood drawn out _fun_?" she asked. "Michael went into vampirism willingly too. Maybe you two have more in common then you realize."

"She's beginning to move," Tyler said as he watched Lucy's body. "You get Gilbert out and make him forget he was ever here. I'll watch her." He nodded at Lucy.

Selina stood up and ran over to Jeremy who was standing in his boxers and looking stricken. "Here," she said, taking him by the arm and leading him to a nearby bathroom. "Let's get you cleaned up. And then we're going to find your clothes and you're going to leave here and never come back, all right?" she looked at him directly when she said the last part.

"All right," he said flatly.

Selina gently wiped the blood from his face and neck. There was enough of it on him that she had to refill the sink twice before he was clean. After he was dressed, she led him out to her car, promising Tyler that she'd be back once she'd gotten Jeremy home. Once he was belted in, she began to drive back to the Gilbert house.

* * *

It was Elena who answered Selina's knock. "Jeremy, my god! Are you all right?" She ushered him and Selina into the house without waiting for an answer. They took seats in the living room, and Elena looked at Selina. "Where'd you find him?"

"At Lucy's house of course," Selina replied. "Technically, I'm not supposed to go there, but I managed to slip away this morning. The boys must think I'm still in bed." She grinned.

"Well, we're lucky that you're so disobedient," Elena said, watching Jeremy. "Thanks for bringing him back."

"You're welcome," Selina said. "Knowing what Katherine did to Damon and Stefan, I didn't want anyone else going through the same thing. I put the thought in his head to not go back to Lucy's under any circumstances as well."

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Elena asked, turning away from her brother for a moment to look at Selina.

"I think he'll be _physically_ okay if he doesn't have any contact with vampires for a while," Selina told her. "_Mentally_, it might take awhile to wean him off Lucy though. She packed a powerful punch." She paused. "If things are all right here, I think I better be getting back to Lucy's house. I have Tyler watching her and I still have to convince _him_ to go back home too."

"Why aren't you just letting Lucy kill him?" Elena asked. "He's the one who murdered your father."

Selina sighed. "I know. But he's also the one who's related to my mother. Even if he's a despicable rat, he's still my family." She stood up and headed for the door. "Goodbye," she said. "And make sure you watch Jeremy very closely, especially for the next couple of days. Tell Jenna, too."

After Elena assured her she would, Selina left the house and headed back to Lucy's.

She found Tyler in the living room, bent over Lucy's body. "How many more times did you have to shoot her?" Selina asked.

"A couple," Tyler replied. "She's actually pretty resilient."

"Give me the gun," Selina ordered.

"No," Tyler said, stroking the barrel. "I want to keep it."

"Where'd you find it, anyway?" Selina asked.

"In the basement," Tyler replied.

"If I let you keep the gun, will you allow me to take you back to your house?" Selina asked. "I promised your father that I'd aid in finding you."

"I don't want to go back home," Tyler told her. "My father doesn't give a damn about me. Just the family reputation, which he clearly thinks I'm disgracing with every breath I take, so what's the point?"

"Come on," Selina told him. "It can't be that bad."

"Oh, it is," Tyler told her.

"What if I promise to visit more often?"

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Tyler asked. "You have every reason to want me dead, and here you are trying to save my life."

Selina nodded. "Strange, isn't it? But that's the weird thing about families I guess. They can wish each other to the bottom of the Atlantic, but when an outsider comes in and wants the same thing, that's when they pull together." She looked at him. "So will you come back to your house with me?"

Tyler sighed. "All right, I'll come back." He looked down at himself, covered in dried blood. "But maybe I should get cleaned up first."

* * *

After Tyler showered, he and Selina got into her car and drove to the Lockwood mansion. When they knocked on the door, Mayor Lockwood opened it immediately. He must have been sitting there for days, Selina thought. "Selina, you found him," Mrs. Lockwood exclaimed, hurrying in from the living room. "Where was he?"

"With a girl," Selina told her. She looked at the mayor. "But don't be too harsh on him. I know the girl he was with and she had me fooled too. She could have taken anyone in."

Selina and Tyler were ushered inside. While Tyler went with his mother, Selina stayed in the living room and talked with the mayor. "Selina," he began, "we can't thank you enough for bringing Tyler back."

"It's no problem," Selina told him.

"Would you like to come back for dinner tonight?" the mayor asked. "What is it you like to eat, if anything?"

Selina thought a moment. "I like chicken."

"All right then," the mayor said, smiling. "Chicken it is. We'll see you around eight?"

"Sure," Selina nodded. "I'll be here."

Selina drove back to the boarding house, parked Damon's car in the garage, and snuck quietly back into the house. But not quietly enough, apparently.

"And just where have you been, young lady?" the house had looked dark from the outside, but the second Selina entered the living room, all the lights came on, and Selina saw that Damon was sitting in a chair near the door.

Selina put her hands on her hips. "I had some errands to run," she said.

Damon laughed. "Before noon? Now tell me something I'll actually believe."

"All right," Selina said, taking a seat on the floor next to him. "I went to Lucy's house. She had Jeremy Gilbert there, and I got him out and took him to Elena's. Then, I went back and got Tyler out and brought him home too. If you want confirmation, at least from Elena, you can call her and ask her. And incidentally, I've been invited to dinner tonight, so I won't be around."

"Who with?" Damon asked.

"Mayor Lockwood and family," Selina replied. "They want to thank me for rescuing Tyler instead of killing him."

"You know," Damon said grinning, "I just realized that since I'm in with the sheriff and you've got the mayor eating out of the palm of your hand, if we don't screw things up, we could stay around here for quite awhile."

"I think I'd like that," Selina said.

* * *

Around seven-thirty, Selina headed back to the Lockwood mansion. When she got there, she parked her car in the street and began the long walk up to the front door. Before she knocked, she just stood there, staring at it and breathing deeply. When she finally _did_ get up the nerve to knock, it was Tyler who answered the door. "Did you just stand out here awhile?" he asked.

"Yeah," she admitted. "It still feels weird to come here sometimes. I mean, I still remember what it was like when Michael lived here."

"I get it," Tyler said. "Come on in."

Over dinner, Selina got up the nerve to ask something she'd been wondering about for awhile: "Richard," she said, addressing the mayor directly. "Could you do me a favor?"

"Of course," Mayor Lockwood said, putting his knife down. "After what you did for us, anything. Just name it."

Selina took a deep breath. "I'd like to see where my mother is buried. Would you take me to her grave?"

The three Lockwoods exchanged uneasy glances for a moment, then Mrs. Lockwood smiled and stood up. "If everyone's finished eating their dinner, then I'll go get dessert. Who wants pie?"

"I do," said Tyler and Mayor Lockwood at the same time. Selina declined and Mrs. Lockwood headed into the kitchen.

"What's going on?" Selina asked as soon as she was gone. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Well Selina," Mayor Lockwood said uncomfortably, "as much as I would love to show you your mother's grave, that's impossible."

"Why?" Selina asked.

He cleared his throat. "After the town was cleansed of vampires in 1864, your mother disappeared. No one ever saw her again, and to this day, we've never even found her body."


	12. The Body

Selina's eyes widened. "Are you serious?"

Mayor Lockwood nodded. "Yes, I am. I'm sorry."

Selina turned to Mrs. Lockwood. "I think I'll have a piece of that pie now, if you don't mind," she said. Although her voice didn't break, the Lockwoods could tell that Selina was trying not to cry.

"Of course, I'll be back in a minute." Mrs. Lockwood got up and headed back into the kitchen.

As soon as she was gone, Selina looked at Mayor Lockwood again. "So you really _do_ have absolutely no idea where my mother is?"

Mayor Lockwood shook his head. "No. I've looked at documents from back then that indicate your mother was seen leaving her house prior to the riots, carrying a valise and hatbox with her, but nothing else. Michael records in a journal of his that his father tried to stop her from leaving that night, but it was no use."

Selina frowned. "That doesn't sound like my mother at all. Just leave town and not tell anyone why especially not her own family? In fact, I don't even see why she'd leave town in the first place."

"Well, what reason did she have to stay?" the mayor asked. "Your father, the love of her life, was dead, Robert Pierce, her second husband, was dead, you were dead. Who else did she have left?"

"But I wasn't dead!" Selina said. "At least not really!"

"Yes, but she didn't know that." Mayor Lockwood said.

"Actually," Selina took a deep breath. "She did."

"What do you mean?" Tyler asked.

"I always tell people that after I left Dr. Stensrund's house, I headed straight into the woods for six months so that I wouldn't hurt anyone, but that's not the truth." She paused. "After he made me kill all those people, I was terrified. I felt like my humanity was slipping away. It was like a bad dream. The night I snuck out of Dr. Stensrund's house, it took me awhile to get my bearings, but eventually, I managed to find my way back to the main road and I just walked along, under the stars, until I found my house…

"_I couldn't go in, of course, because I hadn't been invited, but I stared in every window, trying to figure out where my mother had gone to. I finally found her in the kitchen. That was strange because it was late at night and she should have been in bed, but she wasn't. Instead, she was standing in the kitchen, ingredients around her, making pie of some sort, I couldn't tell you what kind. Suddenly, she turned toward the window and I threw myself against the side of the house just in time to keep her from spotting me. From that point on, I kept myself against the wall, and positioned my body so that I could see her, but she couldn't see me. _

"_From the looks of things, she hadn't slept in a very long time: she was pale, her eyes had dark circles and were rimmed in red. Her hair was straggly and dirty, as if she no longer bothered to take care of it, and she wore a white nightgown with spots of dirt on the skirt and especially around the hem._

"_As I watched her, I could feel my heart just turn over. Against my better judgment, I opened the sash on the window. "Can I come in?" I asked._

_At the sight of me, she started. "Selina?" she asked. "Dr. Stensrund said you were dead. He buried you himself, with his own two hands!"_

"_Did you see him do it?" I asked._

_My mother thought a moment. 'No,' she admitted, 'I didn't.'_

"_Well," I said, "If you want to hear what really happened, you'll have to invite me in."_

'_I'm sorry, come in. She blinked and then came over to the window. 'I'll unlock the front door. I don't think you'll fit through the window.'_

"_As soon as I was seated at the kitchen table, with her sitting across from me, I spoke again. 'How can you take this so calmly?' I asked her._

"_She shrugged. 'I don't know. I guess I've been so lonely that seeing somebody I know, alive or dead, is a great comfort to me.' She paused. 'Could you tell me,' she said after a moment, 'what's heaven like, dear?'_

"_I honestly didn't know what to say to that. I was expecting her to come chasing after me with a stake to be perfectly honest. Not to sit at the kitchen table and discuss the afterlife. Finally, I took her hand. 'It's wonderful,' I said. "I've seen Papa, and we talk all the time. He's a great man.'_

"_That made Mama smile. 'Well," she said, holding out her hand to me, 'I'm ready to go.'_

"_I frowned. 'Ready to go where, Mama?' I asked. She stared at me. 'Ready to go to heaven, of course. Aren't you the angel they sent to bring me to the next world?'_

"_At that point, I was flustered. I had no idea what to say. At least it explained why she wasn't afraid of me or going after me with a stake; she thought I was an _angel,_ not a vampire. Finally, I just settled for saying, 'I'm not here to bring you to heaven, but God has seen how much you're suffering and sent me to comfort you.'_

"_Tears welled up in her eyes. 'He truly works in magnificent ways. I never thought I'd see you again, and here you are.' I admit _I_ teared up too._"

"_Finally, Mama looked up at me with wide blue eyes. She reached out as if she wanted to take my hand, but something was holding her back. 'If I touch you', she whispered, 'will I die?'_

"_Despite the fact that I'd fed off some poor guy Dr. Stendsrund had caught for me before running away, I was still a little unstable and not completely in control of my bloodlust. As I sat there talking to my mother, I could feel it creeping up on me. The last thing I wanted to do, of course, was feed on my mother, so I said 'Yes, if you touch me, you _will _die.'_

"_And that's when she reached out and grabbed my hand. I hissed and snapped at her, nearly giving in. I could see her eyes widen. Then, as I realized what I had almost done, I pulled my hand away, stood up, turned on my heel, and ran. Into the woods, for six months. Living on animals so I wouldn't hurt anyone as I had almost hurt my mother."_

As Selina finished her story, she looked up at Tyler and the mayor, who were wearing shocked expressions. They sat in stunned silence until Mrs. Lockwood came back with Selina's pie.

"Mom, did you know that Selina saw her mother after she was turned?" Tyler asked.

Mrs. Lockwood turned to Selina in surprise. _"You did?"_

"Yeah," Selina replied wistfully. "I wanted comforting after what happened with Dr. Stensrund, but maybe my visit hurt more than it helped."

"How could it hurt?" Tyler asked. "Your mother thought you were an angel coming to comfort her."

"I know that," Selina replied. "But I don't know what happened after I left. Michael didn't say anything about Mama when he found me."

"Just a minute," Mayor Lockwood said, standing up. "Do you remember the date you went to visit your mother?"

"Well," Selina replied, "let me think: my 'death' was in June of 1864, and I stayed at Dr. Stensrund's for about three weeks before I got away, so I think I went back to see Mama around the fourth of July, 1864."

Mayor Lockwood nodded. "All right." He left the kitchen and came back after a moment holding four large boxes in his arms.

"Here, Dad," Tyler said, taking two, "let me help you with those."

"Thanks, son," Mayor Lockwood grunted as he shifted two boxes from his grip to Tyler's and they moved the boxes to the coffee table.

"What _are_ all these?" Selina asked.

"Documents," Mayor Lockwood said simply. "A written history of Mystic Falls."

"And one of these documents might tell us what happened to my mother?" Selina asked.

Mayor Lockwood shook his head. "No, but there might be something in here that will tell us if anything significant happened to your mother after your sudden appearance."

"I don't know if I want to see any of this," Selina said. "If something bad _did_ happen to Mama after I left, then it will be my fault."

"I doubt we'll find anything," Tyler told her. "Dad pulls out these old boxes every few years to see if he can find anything, and nothing new ever comes up."

The four of them looked through the boxes together, and Selina was relieved initially when they found nothing about her mother. Then, Mayor Lockwood found a letter sent from her mother to a friend on July 5:

_July 5, 1864_

_Dear Marie,_

_I had a strange dream last night, even, though I haven't slept since Selina's death: I dreamed that she came and stood by the window and asked me to invite her in. I did and we talked. She told me that God had seen my suffering and had sent her to comfort me. The strange thing is, even though my daughter was an angel, she looked troubled. And when I tried to touch her, she growled and spat like an angry kitten, and her eyes became strange. Then, she ran away. It's a troubling omen, and I worry about her soul._

_After I woke up and dressed this morning, I went and saw a woman in Richmond who claimed to be able to see the future and communicate with spirits. I asked her if my daughter was at peaceful rest and she said that Selina was not; that because she hadn't had a Christian burial, she'd be doomed to walk the earth for eternity. She also claimed that my Matthew wasn't resting in peace either, but that doesn't surprise me, seeing as his body was taken for who knows what purpose. I wonder why God saw fit to punish both my husband and daughter: they did nothing wrong in their lives. If anything, they were virtuous and brave and should be rewarded. Maybe I did something wrong, and I'm being punished for it. I believe that's what's going on. Well, I won't allow anyone else to suffer because of me._

_Goodbye Marie,_

_Amelia_

Selina took the note from the mayor and looked it over. "I don't believe it," she said. "My mother committed suicide!"

"You don't know that," Tyler told her, taking the note from her gently and looking it over himself. "It doesn't say 'I'm going to kill myself.'"

"But it implies it!" Selina said. "She probably wrote this note and then killed herself soon afterward."

"Well, I guess we'll never know," Mayor Lockwood told them, putting the note back in the box where he'd found it. "There's no point in dwelling on things we can't change."

Selina looked up at the mayor. "Thanks for dinner. I think I should be heading home now."

"All right Selina," he said. "And I'm awfully sorry."

"It's all right," Selina replied emptily as she left the Lockwood mansion and headed back to the boardinghouse.

* * *

When she got back, she headed straight upstairs. She just wanted to go to sleep and never wake up again.

"So how was dinner?" asked a voice as she entered her and Damon's bedroom. She jumped and Damon grinned. "Did you have fun?"

"Well," Selina replied, collapsing onto the bed. "If you call finding out that my mother disappeared after the vampire cleansing and no one's found her body since 'fun', then yes, I had a wonderful time."

"How did your mother come into the conversation?" Damon asked.

Selina sighed and climbed next to him on the bed. "Well, Mayor Lockwood asked if there was anything he could do to repay me for bringing Tyler back, and I said that I wanted to have a look at my mother's grave if it wasn't too much trouble. And then he said that was quite impossible because Mama apparently disappeared in 1864, and no one's seen her since. Then, he brought out boxes of all these official documents from over the years to see if there were any clues to her whereabouts that he might have missed, and we found this letter that Mama wrote to her friend Marie that talked an awful lot about how badly she wanted to die."

"So you think your mother killed herself?" Damon asked.

"From the letter, it sure sounds like it," Selina replied.

"What did the letter say?" Damon asked. "Whatever it was, it's clearly bothering you."

Selina took a deep breath, eased herself off the bed, and went to the open bedroom door. "Stefan," she called. "Would you come in here a minute? I need to tell you and Damon something."

Stefan appeared a moment later and sat down next to his brother. "What is it, Selina?" he asked, looking concerned.

"I have a confession to make," Selina announced. "You know how I told the two of you that after I escaped from Dr. Stensrund's, I went straight to the woods and lived on animals for six months?"

"Yes," said Damon and Stefan together.

"Well, it's not entirely true. The first thing I did was visit Mama. She looked horrible. She wasn't taking care of herself, and I could tell she'd actually started drinking. When she saw me, she thought I was an angel coming to relieve her of her misery and take her up to heaven. That's probably why she let me in without question and didn't try and chase me with a stake. She was drunk. Either that or so broken down that she saw what she wanted to and went with it. When she touched me, I almost bit her. That's when I ran. And I never saw her again."

Stefan and Damon were looking at her with concerned expressions on their faces. She walked to the bed and sat down on it, letting Damon put his arms around her.

Just then, the phone rang. Stefan got up to get it and came back upstairs holding it in his hand. "Damon," he said, "it's the sheriff for you. They found a body buried up in the hills."

"Vampire victim?" Damon asked.

"I don't think so," Stefan said.

"What did the sheriff say about the body?" Selina asked.

"Not much," Stefan replied. "They haven't had much time to look it over, but they think it was a female who was quite well to do. She was buried with a pink pearl necklace and a ruby ring shaped like a heart."

Selina gasped. "Oh, my God! That's Mama's body!"


	13. Threatened

"Just a minute, Sheriff." Stefan took the phone away from his ear and looked at Selina. "You can't be serious. Are you?"

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "Mama got the pink pearl necklace on her eighteenth birthday, and Daddy gave her the ring when they got engaged."

Stefan put the phone back to his ear. "Sorry about that, Sheriff. Did you want to speak to Damon? All right."

Stefan held out the phone and Damon took it. "Hello, Liz. What's going on?" He paused. "Are you absolutely sure you need to have her come with me to identify the body?" he asked. "Why can't you just ask the mayor? He's Amelia Warren's family, too after all." He frowned. "All right, if it's absolutely necessary, I'll bring her and meet you where you found the body. All right, goodbye, Liz." He clicked off the phone and handed it back to Stefan.

"What's going on?" Selina asked.

Damon sighed. "Liz says they're pretty sure that the body they found is your mother, but since you're the closest Warren relative, they need you to come with me and make a positive ID."

Selina frowned. "Why me? Why can't Richard do it? He has enough material around that house of his to identify Mama in two seconds!"

Damon shrugged. "I don't know." He paused. "Look, if you really don't feel up to going, I can go alone and make some excuse for you."

Selina bit her lip. "No," she told him. "I can go, it's fine."

"_Really_?" Damon asked.

Selina nodded. "Really. I swear."

So they got in Damon's car and drove out into the hills, where they found Sheriff Forbes standing around with the other officers and as some men worked to gently pull the body out of the ground. Once it was out and laying on a tarp next to where it had been buried, the Sheriff looked at Selina.

"I'm really sorry I have to ask you to do this," she said. "But people from this town have been looking for Amelia Warren for years, and if you could just reassure us that this is her, it would mean so much."

Selina took a deep breath and walked toward the tarp, gazing down at it. "From the body itself, I couldn't tell you anything, but the items with the body definitely belonged to Amelia Warren when she was alive and had a lot of sentimental value for her. I don't see how this person could be anyone else unless she gave the jewelry away to another person without telling anyone." She turned to Sheriff Forbes. "Will it be difficult to determine cause of death?"

The sheriff shook her head. "It's actually painfully obvious how she died. There's a hole on the side of the skull that would seem to indicate that the woman died from blunt force trauma to the head, but we're going to send her remains down to the medical examiner so we can get a definite cause of death as well as a more precise identification."

As soon as the sheriff mentioned it, Selina noticed the hole. It was gaping and there was no doubt that it had been fatal. She began to get dizzy and just as she was about to faint, she clutched Damon for support and he held on to her tightly.

"Is that all you need from us, Sheriff?" he asked.

"Yes," Sheriff Forbes nodded. "And I'll be reporting the discovery to Mayor Lockwood in the morning."

Damon nodded and led Selina back to the car. The two of them drove home in silence. When they got back to the boardinghouse, it was just after midnight, and Selina decided to go straight to bed.

"Are you going to be okay?" Damon asked her.

Selina nodded. "It might take awhile, but I will be. Eventually."

* * *

The next day, Selina decided to stay at the boardinghouse even though it was a school day. "I need to work out what I discovered yesterday," Selina explained when Stefan asked her why. "It's a lot to process."

"Just remember that it's going to be all right," he told her.

"Okay." Selina watched him leave. Damon had gone off somewhere, so she was on her own. After awhile, however, the doorbell rang downstairs and Selina ran to answer it, surprised to see Elena on the other side. "Aren't you supposed to be in school?" Selina asked.

"Yes," Elena replied as she stepped inside. "But I heard about the body, and I thought I'd stop by in case you want company. If you'd rather be alone though, I'll head straight to school."

"Did Stefan tell you?" Selina guessed.

"Yeah," Elena nodded. "it's so weird how your mother was a missing person for years, and then the second you come back to town, the sheriff manages to find her body."

"Yeah," Selina sat next to Elena on one of the living room sofas. "And that's not all. When I was having dinner at the mayor's, he told me that Michael wrote about Mama leaving carrying a valise and a hatbox along with her. And yet, in the grave, there were only her valuables. If she was murdered as the result of a robbery, the robbers were complete morons. Where do you think her clothes went?"

Elena shrugged. "I don't know. But now that you mention it, if the rubies and pearls are genuine, it _is_ strange that no one would try and steal them. Do you know how she died?"

Selina shuddered. "The sheriff thinks it was because of blunt force trauma. One look at the skeleton's head makes that pretty obvious. There was a big gaping hole that was obviously from a fatal blow."

"But it makes no sense," Elena said. "Who would want to kill your mother? She seems like a perfectly nice person who had nothing but bad stuff happen to her."

"I can think of one person who'd want her dead," Selina said.

"Who?" Elena asked.

"Lucy."

* * *

A week later, Alaric showed up for history class carrying a newspaper. "Something very important came up in the news today," he said. "I bet you've all read it by now, but in case you haven't, I brought it to share with you." He cleared his throat and began to read:

"_Amelia Warren's Body Found_

_More than 100 years after her disappearance from Mystic Falls, the body of Amelia Warren was discovered last week, buried in a grave in the hills._

'_It's satisfying to finally have an ending to a mystery that's been haunting this town for so many years, even if it's not a happy one,' said Mayor Richard Lockwood. Amelia Warren was a Lockwood before she married Matthew Warren in 1845. _

_ The motive for Amelia's murder is still unclear. None of her valuables were stolen, but were in fact buried _with _her in her grave. It was initially speculated that Amelia was a victim of a vampire attack, since she disappeared around the first time the town was cleansed of vampires, but there's no evidence of such an attack on the body._

"_Amelia Warren wasn't attacked by vampires at all," said Sheriff Elizabeth Forbes. "Her death was caused by a brutal attack to her skull, although the motive for the murder is still a mystery, and may never be solved. The body was originally identified by Amelia's descendant Sophia Warren, and we are grateful for her assistance with this case."_

As soon as he finished reading, Alaric rolled up the newspaper and looked back up at the class, especially Selina. "Quite a piece of news, huh?" When he noticed that Selina was in tears, he excused her from class and she ran from the room.

As soon as the bell rang, Stefan and Elena found Selina sobbing by a pay phone. "I think you need to go home," Stefan said. "Call Damon to come and pick you up, and just go home and relax."

"No," Selina shook her head. "All the relaxing in the world isn't going to make me feel better." She turned to face the other two. "My mother was _murdered_, Stefan. And I can't just sit idly by while the person responsible gets away scot-free."

"But your mother disappeared years ago," Stefan said. "Whoever did it is probably dead by now."

"She thinks Lucy did it," Elena told him.

"Yes, I do," Selina agreed. "Sheriff Forbes said there was no known motive for the murder, and who else would have a reason to want my mother dead besides the woman who was in love with my father?"

"I don't know," Stefan said. "But I don't think it was Lucy. I asked her about your mother the night I met her at the Grill, and she seemed genuinely appalled by the suggestion that she might have done your mother any harm."

"Well," Selina scoffed. "She was obviously lying to throw you off."

"I'd leave this idea alone if I were you, Selina." Stefan told her. "If you start something with Lucy and it turns out she's innocent, you might regret bringing anything up."

"But if she's guilty, then I will have avenged my mother once and for all," Selina countered. She looked at Elena. "What do _you_ think I should do?" she asked.

"I agree with Stefan," Elena said. "I think you're really worked up right now, and you should call Damon and let him take you home. Once you've calmed down, then we can figure out how to approach it if you still feel something needs to be done."

"All right," Selina replied, after a sharp intake of breath. "Your opinions are duly noted."

"Do you promise you'll call Damon to come get you?" Elena asked. "Or do we need to stand here and watch you dial?"

"I promise I'll call him," Selina said. "You two just run along."

"Okay," Stefan said, eyeing her suspiciously as he turned away.

As soon as they were gone, Selina took the phone off the hook, stuck her quarters in, and dialed. "Hey Damon," she said when the answering machine came on. "I'll be home a little late. I have to run over to Lucy's. I have a question for her."

* * *

To Selina's surprise, Lucy answered her knock with a bitter frown and an icy "what do you want?"

"I just came for a chat," she replied, surprised by the vehemence in Lucy's tone. "Did I do something wrong?"

"Let's not forget, dearest darling, that last time we met, you got that cousin of yours to riddle me full of bullets and then you wouldn't even let me kill him. Did you come to finish me off?"

"No," Selina said, sitting down on the couch. "I was just wondering if you've been keeping up with the news lately."

Lucy's expression eased slightly. "Yes," she said. "I read about the police finding your mother's body up in the hills."

"Yeah," Selina replied. "So tell me, why'd you kill her? And what did you use?"

Lucy's eyes widened. "You think _I_ killed your mother?" she asked.

"Yes," Selina replied. "I can't think of anyone else who'd have a reason to, and neither can the sheriff."

Lucy smiled, turning it on and off quickly. "Well, I've got news for you, sweet pea. I didn't kill your mother, and I have absolutely no idea who did."

"You're lying to me," Selina said. "Just like you lied to Stefan." She bared her fangs and rushed Lucy, but before she could do anything, Lucy had her by the throat, making her unable to move.

"All right dear," Lucy said as Selina choked. "Here's the deal: I don't want to hurt you, but if you ever try that again, I will make you _very, very_ sorry. Do you understand me? I have more power then you can fathom, and what happened with the police officer, your cousin, and that Gilbert boy was only the beginning. We can do wonders together, Selina. You can either come _with _me, and the town will be spared any danger, or you can oppose me, and have to live with the guilt that you have doomed everyone. What do you say?" With that, she let Selina go, and the younger vampire began to sputter and cough.

"I'll never join you," she said when she could speak.

"You don't really have a choice," Lucy replied. "You'll side with me eventually, whether you like it or not. Have a good day, Selina."


	14. The Gun in the Grave

As soon as Selina recovered her equilibrium, she left Lucy's house and drove back to the spot where the sheriff and her men had found the body. She parked in the grass and opened the car door, getting out and slamming it behind her. The body's makeshift grave hadn't been filled in, and the area was still surrounded by yellow crime scene tape. After making sure that there was no one around to see what she was doing, Selina ducked under the tape and stood at the edge of the hole, staring down into it. Soon, she noticed something poking out of the dirt. She got down on her knees and began digging deeper until what she had seen was revealed: a small, rusty pistol. Selina picked it up and ran her hands over it. Was it more evidence that her mother had committed suicide? But the body had a hole in the skull that indicated it had been bludgeoned. Selina frowned and turned it over again.

It was a very old weapon, seemingly as old as the skeleton it was buried with, but Selina didn't know much about weaponry so she couldn't be sure. After scratching off some dirt, she noticed that the pistol had initials on it, M.A.W. Selina had no idea who that was, but whoever it was, she wondered what their pistol was doing in her mother's grave. Had they given it to her so that she could end a life she found so difficult to live? And if they had, why was the hole in the skeleton's skull much too big to have come from a pistol shot? Feeling tears threaten to fall down her cheeks, Selina threw the pistol back in the grave and headed back to her car, but instead of heading to the boarding house, she drove to the nearest mall and spent the rest of the day engaging in retail therapy.

* * *

By the time she got back to the boardinghouse, it was after dark. The incident at Lucy's still fresh in her mind, Selina figured she'd have to tell _some_body about it just in case Lucy acted on her promise to destroy the town. But it definitely wouldn't be Stefan because he would just berate her for going to Lucy's house after he and Elena had made her promise not to. That left Damon, although Selina assumed he wouldn't be too happy with her either, but she knew how to soften him up.

After she was sure that everyone was asleep, she went to her old bedroom and exchanged her clothes for one of the more extravagant things she'd gotten at the mall: a dark red lace and silk teddy. She then tiptoed through the dark hallway being very careful not to bump into anything, and when she reached her and Damon's bedroom, knocked on the door. It took awhile, but eventually, she heard movement. The door opened a crack, and she heard Damon whisper in a grumpy voice "Stefan, what do you want at this time of nigh…" He trailed off when he saw it wasn't his brother, but Selina instead.

"Did I come at a bad time?" she whispered. "I can leave and come back later. I just thought that since you were gone all day today, and _I_ was gone all day today, it might be nice to have some time alone."

Damon was gaping at her. "Sweetheart," he finally managed to get out, "where'd _this_ come from?" he gestured wildly at her outfit.

She looked down at it for a moment and said dismissively "it's nothing. Just a little something I picked up at the mall. Are you going to let me in, or are we just going to stand here staring at each other?"

He blinked. "Oh, yeah sure. Come on in!"

As she climbed onto the bed, he asked "are you going to be needing any drinks this time?"

She shook her head. "_I _don't think so, but it all depends on what you want." She gave him a smoldering glance. He was just about to climb on to the bed when he paused and attempted to give her a hard look.

"Not that I'm looking a gift horse in the mouth here, but can I inquire about the reason for all your…generosity?" he asked, looking her over as she lay down on her back and spread out on the bed.

"I _told _you," she said. "I missed you today and I want us to spend some time together." Her face became blank. "I'm not Katherine, Damon. I don't do things like this because I have ulterior motives."

He sighed and climbed up next to her. "You're right; I'm sorry."

She pushed herself up on her elbows and kissed him. "I forgive you." Then, she pulled the covers over them and they weren't aware of anything else.

* * *

The next morning, much to her surprise, Selina was out of bed before Damon was. She went downstairs for a glass of orange juice and by the time she got back upstairs, he was awake.

"And how are _you_ this morning?" she asked as he entered, shutting the door behind her.

"Good," she said, smiling. "Great, just wonderful."

She climbed back into bed and kissed him. "I have something to confess," she said as she pulled away. "Yesterday, I went over to Lucy's, and it didn't exactly go well."

Damon frowned. "How well didn't it go?"

"_Well_," Selina hopped off the bed and stood facing him with her hands on her hips. "I basically accused her of killing my mother, because I mean come on, who else could have done it, right?" She paused to take a breath and then plowed on. "Then, she got really angry and said that she was going to commit a whole lot of evil against the town. And not only that, that I was going to _join _her when she did the worst of it. Isn't that awful?"

"My God, Selina." Damon sucked in his breath. "If you weren't dressed like that, do you realize how angry I'd be at you right now?"

"I know," Selina gave him a small smile. "Why do you think I did this?"

He looked at her pointedly. "Be serious for a minute, all right? Now what exactly did Lucy say to you?"

"Before she choked me or after?" Selina asked.

Damon shook his head. "It doesn't matter. Just tell me what she said when she talked about destroying the town."

"She said 'what happened with your cousin, the police officer and the Gilbert boy was only the beginning. We can do wonders, Selina. You can either come _with _me and the town will be spared any danger, or you can oppose me, and have to live with the guilt that you've doomed everyone'."

"Well," Damon said after a moment. "She sounds serious. Now, I know Stefan and I have said this several times, but every time you've ignored it so I'm going to say it again—"

Selina sighed. "You don't have to, I know what _it_ is: stay away from Lucy because she's dangerous."

Damon nodded. "That's right. Are you actually going to listen this time, or are you just paying me lip service again?"

Selina shook her head. "No, I actually mean it. I don't want to get beat up again. Lucy really is a lot tougher than she looks." Selina paused. "Please don't tell Stefan about this; otherwise he'll get on his soapbox and I'm going to have to hear a lecture."

"I won't tell him," Damon promised. "This is just between us."

* * *

At school, after history class, Alaric asked Selina to stay behind.

"What do you need, Mr. Saltzman?" Selina asked him. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No," Alaric shook his head. "I just wanted to apologize for reading the article about Amelia Warren in class. I saw you had some problems with it."

Selina shook her head. "It's all right. It's just that she's my family."

"Yeah," Alaric nodded. "It must be difficult to hear about how your mother was very possibly bludgeoned to death by an unknown assailant."

"Yeah, it really…hold on a minute," Selina said. "Did you just refer to Amelia Warren as my mother?"

"Yes I did," Alaric said. "She is, isn't she Selina?"

Selina looked at him, stunned. "How'd you figure it out?" she asked.

"Your ring," he said. "My wife was a bit of a vampire enthusiast and they seemed to be part of the folklore."

"Oh." Selina looked down at the ring as if she'd forgotten it.

"And," he continued, "I stumbled across an old picture of you in the town archives. You know, you really haven't changed a bit."

"Yes I have," Selina said. "I've changed in every possible way." She paused. "So now that you know about me, what are you going to do with that knowledge? Are you going to turn me in? Because I'll have you know that the Lockwoods are sworn to protect me. It won't do you any good."

He shook his head. "I don't want to turn you in. you seem harmless enough."

"Thanks a lot," Selina scoffed.

"But I _do_ want to help you figure out who killed your mother," he said. "Would you let me?"

Selina thought a moment. "Sure, you can help. In fact I'd be grateful," she told him.

* * *

After school, Selina, Stefan, Damon and Elena congregated in the boardinghouse kitchen. "Mr. Saltzman knows about me," Selina said. "But he promised he wouldn't turn me in. And he offered to help us figure out who killed my mother." She paused. "Speaking of my mother, yesterday, I went back to the spot where the sheriff found her body. The hole hadn't been filled in yet and I noticed something sticking out of the dirt. I managed to dig it out and saw that it was a small, badly tarnished pistol."

"Your mother's makeshift grave seems to have all sorts of surprises in it, doesn't it?" Stefan asked.

"It sure does," Selina agreed. "Anyway, there was nothing really remarkable about the pistol until I wiped some dirt off it and found that it had some initials on it: M.A.W. I assume that M.A.W. gave Mama the gun to shoot herself with."

"Oh?" Elena replied, standing up. "Now you think your mother's death was suicide by pistol shot? Yesterday, you were convinced she was beaten to death and that Lucy was the perpetrator."

Selina nodded. "So much so that I went over to her house and accused her. It made her kind of angry and she's promised vengeance on the entire town. _And_ she said that I was going to take part in all the evil-doing _with _her."

Damon saw that Stefan was about to begin a lecture, caught Stefan's eye and shook his head, causing Stefan to shut his mouth.

"We'll deal with anything that comes up," was all he said after awhile.

Selina turned to Elena. "And she threatened Jeremy too. Have you and Jenna been watching him carefully?" she asked.

Elena nodded. "But especially since Lucy seems really pissed off and intent on causing harm, we wouldn't mind a little help."

"What do you mean?" Selina asked.

"Well," Elena replied, "would you consider moving in with us until this whole mess blows over? Then, we'd have someone around who could fight off Lucy if she pulled anything, and protect Jeremy better if he got any ideas. What do you say?"

"All right," Selina replied. "As long as your aunt's okay with it."

Elena smiled. "Of course she will be. She really likes you and wants you to come over again."

"What are we going to tell her about why I need to stay with you?"

Elena thought a moment. "We'll say you were the victim of a major insect infestation and people are coming to spray so you can't be in your house."

"But I'm going to need to be there more than a couple of days and exterminators wouldn't take more than that. Unless they were really inept of course."

"Don't worry about it," Elena grinned. "We'll think of something."

* * *

Lucy parked her car in the street near the Lockwood mansion and walked slowly up the drive. When she was at the front door, she rang the doorbell and was surprised when the mayor himself let her in.

"Hi," she said to him. "I'm Lucy Andrews, from the historical society. We spoke on the phone a couple of days ago about the materials you had to contribute to the exhibit about Amelia and Matthew Warren."

"Yes of course," Mayor Lockwood said, grinning wide. "Come along with me and I'll show them to you." He led Lucy to a room at the back of the house which doubled as a vault and held several old documents and items pertaining to Amelia and Matthew Warren. "I'm so pleased the historical society decided to put the exhibit on," he said. He pulled out a journal that Matthew Warren had written in while he was at war and showed it to Lucy. "I think you'll like what's in here," he said, handing it to her. She leafed through it gently. "He writes a lot about Amelia and their daughter Selina in here. Do you think you'll be able to use it?"

Lucy closed the diary and nodded, grinning. "Oh, yes," she told him. "Yes I will indeed."


	15. Affairs to Forget

Selina met Alaric before school and handed him half of a stack of books and papers she'd gathered both from the mayor and her own collection. "I haven't looked through any of these yet, obviously," she told him. "But they look promising."

"All right," he said, taking them from her, "and I'll go through all my resources to see if I can find anything you might have missed or don't have access to."

Selina nodded. "That sounds good," she told him. "And thanks again for helping me out like this."

He nodded. "It's no problem. In fact, ever since I found out about your mother's disappearance, it's intrigued me."

"Why?" Selina asked.

"Well," Alaric sat down at his desk. "You remember how I told you about my wife, the vampire enthusiast?"

Selina nodded.

"Well," he continued, "She actually disappeared some time ago, and they never found her body. Just like your mother. She's probably dead by now."

"I'm sorry," Selina said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Have you given up yet?"

He looked up at her. "I don't know. Maybe I should, and just try to move on, you know what I mean?" he paused. "What do you think?"

"Well," Selina shrugged. "Look at what happened with my mother: she disappeared and the people of this town conducted a seemingly fruitless search for over a hundred years before they actually found anything. So I think that if it's something you really want, you _should_ keep looking for your wife. Who knows? One of these days, you just might find her. Or she could find you."

Alaric gave her a small smile and nodded. "Thanks, Selina. I needed that. I'll look all this over and check with my contacts, then tell you if I find anything."

"Listen," Selina said. "If this is too personal a question you can tell me to go jump in a lake, but could you tell me how your wife died?"

"Well," Alaric said, "she was attacked by a vampire, actually."

"Really?" Selina gasped. "Do you think you'll ever find them?"

"Actually," Alaric told her, "I have seen him. He's here right now. I even know his name."

"Who was it?" asked Selina breathlessly.

"It's somebody you know well," Alaric told her. "Stefan's brother, Damon Salvatore."

"_What_?" Selina asked, then she shook her head. "No, he wouldn't. That's not possible. It must have been someone else."

"No," Alaric shook his head. "I'm certain it was Damon. You can ask him yourself if you care to. He'd know her as Isobel Flemming."

"All right," Selina said, turning away from him. "You bet I will."

* * *

After a long, uneventful school day, Stefan drove Selina back to the boardinghouse so that she could pack to go to Elena's.

"I should probably just empty out my entire dresser," Selina mused. "With Lucy in the state she's in, I could be at Elena's for a _long_ time."

"Which wouldn't be necessary if not for you," Stefan said, coming up behind her.

"Would you _stop_?" Selina ordered. "I said I was sorry. Besides, I had good intentions, and I don't see you doing anything to help."

Stefan sighed. "You're right, I'm sorry. Do you need any help?"

Selina began pulling clothes out of her dresser and throwing them into suitcases. "After I fill each one of these, would you go put them by the door? I told Elena I would call her once I finished packing and then she's going to come and pick me up."

"Sounds like you have this situation all under control," Stefan observed, grabbing two bags and piling them next to the front door.

"Of course I do," Selina said. "Just because I occasionally make one bad decision doesn't mean I'm completely incompetent."

"I never said anything like that," Stefan protested. "Now you're putting words in my mouth."

Once the last bag was in the pile by the front door, Selina called Elena, who picked up immediately and promised to be right over.

"Your car has a roomy trunk, right?" Selina asked, as Elena stared in awe at her baggage.

"Yeah," she said. "But if everything doesn't fit the first time, we can always make more than one trip. I don't mind."

With Stefan's help, they loaded all the bags into the trunk of Elena's car. There was just barely enough room for everything.

"By the way," Selina said to Stefan as she got in the car, "if you happen to see your brother at some point today, would you tell him that I'm going to be at Elena's house until who knows when, and to give me a call on my cell phone? There's something I need to ask him about."

"Ask who about what?" Damon asked, suddenly coming around the back of the house.

Selina turned away from the car and motioned to him. "Would you come in the house?" she asked. "I heard something today, and I need you to tell me if it's true or not."

"What did you hear?" Damon asked as soon as they were inside.

Selina took a deep breath. "Does the name Isobel Flemming mean anything to you?" she asked.

"Oh, my God!" Damon said, turning away. "How the hell did you find out about her?"

"From Mr. Saltzman," Selina said. "Her husband. So, what went on between you and Isobel? Did you sleep with her?"

"Yes." When he answered, Damon didn't look at her.

"Anything else?" Selina asked.

"She came to me and asked me to turn her," he said after a deep breath. "And I did."

Selina's eyes widened. "I don't believe this!" she yelled. "You don't even come to see me when I'm dying but when some cheap slut asks you to turn her, you do it and don't blink an eye?" she gave a small, bitter laugh. "You disgust me."

Damon frowned. "Well, I guess it's good that you get to be away from me then, isn't it?" He turned to walk away and then said icily over his shoulder, "I hope you have a good time."

"Are you all right?" Elena asked as Selina left the house and approached her car.

"I will be," Selina said. "Just get me as far away from Damon as possible and I will be."

"Did the two of you have another fight?" Elena guessed.

"I found out that he was in a relationship awhile back with a woman named Isobel Flemming. He apparently turned her into a vampire. Before that, she was Mr. Saltzman's wife." Selina told her. "I wonder what was so special about her that Damon turned her."

"I'm sure he had his reasons," Elena said, starting the car.

"When Mr. Saltzman told me that Damon attacked his wife, I didn't want to believe it, because everything was so perfect and if I believed what he said, then I would just get angry and it would ruin everything."

"You mean like you are right now?" Elena pointed out.

"Yeah," Selina said. "Just like I am right now."

Elena looked in the rearview mirror and turned her head slightly toward Selina. "When did Mr. Saltzman tell you that Damon attacked his wife?" she asked.

"This morning," Selina said. "When I came by the history classroom to drop off things that he could use to help us find out what happened to Mama."

* * *

When they arrived at the Gilbert house, both Jenna and Jeremy were on hand in the kitchen to help Selina with her things.

"I'm so sorry about your house," Jenna said as Elena brought her bags in. "Elena told me that it flooded and you wouldn't be able to live in it for days."

"Yeah," Selina said. "Thank you so much for agreeing to take me in like this."

"No problem," Jenna replied easily. "Now, there's an empty room across the hall from Elena. Would that work for you?"

"Sounds great," Selina replied.

Late that night, Selina was finishing up her homework when there was a knock on her door. Curious about who it could be so late at night, Selina put her pen down on the desk and went to answer it, surprised to see Jeremy on the other side.

"Jeremy," she said in surprise, "what are you still doing up? Shouldn't you be asleep by now?"

"I couldn't sleep," he said, stepping inside. "Not while you're in here hurting."

"What?" Selina asked, laughing a little. "Thank you for your concern, Jeremy but I'm fine."

He ignored her. "You've been hurt recently, and badly, just like I have, haven't you?" he said, giving her a penetrating glance.

"A little," Selina admitted. "I found out my fiancé cheated on me with another girl while we were dating. I had no idea about it. What about you?"

"Awhile ago, there was a girl I cared about, Vickie Donovan. She disappeared without a trace, and not too long ago, her body was found. She'd been dead for weeks."

"Oh, Jeremy, I'm sorry." Selina said. He'd been hurt by Damon too.

When he reached out and took her hand, she didn't object, in fact she welcomed it. Then, he pulled her to him and began planting kisses on her neck.

When she realized what was happening, Selina pulled away. "Jeremy," she said, "what are you _doing_?"

He stopped and looked at her again. "I like Lucy, but when I'm with you, I don't think of her. Only of you, and how much you hurt, and how much I want to make the hurt go away." He paused. "But if you think this is wrong, then I'll leave you alone and go back to Lucy."

Selina paused. "So what you're telling me is that as long as you and I are together, you won't go anywhere near Lucy."

Jeremy nodded. "Why would I have a reason to?" he asked.

Selina took a deep breath and nodded. "All right, Jeremy. You're right about all the hurt I'm feeling. But we can't let Elena know about this. It has to be done with cloak-and-dagger stealth."

"All right," he said, resuming kissing her neck and slowly pulling off her clothes as he guided her into the bed. "She'll never know."


	16. A Paraphrase From Queen Victoria

The knock at her bedroom door was what woke Selina up the next morning. She opened her eyes and sat up, calling out "who is it?"

"It's Elena," replied the voice from the other side of the door. "Can I come in? I have something I need to tell you."

Selina's eyes traveled to Jeremy's still sleeping form beside her in the bed. "Just a minute," she called back. "I'm not exactly dressed for company. Can it wait?"

"Sure," Elena said. "I'll be back in a minute."

As soon as she was gone, Selina tried to shake Jeremy awake. "Jeremy, you have to wake up _now_."

"Huh? What?" His eyes opened and he looked at her. "Are you okay?" he asked. "Can I do something for you?"

"Yeah," Selina said. "You can go hide in the closet and not make a sound."

"Why?"

"Because," Selina told him, "Elena was just here and wanting to come in. We wouldn't want her to know you're here. Remember cloak-and-dagger stealth?"

"Yeah, I remember," Jeremy said, easing himself out of the bed. "But why would Elena want to come up here anyway?"

Selina shrugged. "She said she had something to tell me. I don't know what it is, though. Now get in the closet. She said she'd be back any minute!"

"All right," Jeremy said, getting into the closet, shutting the door behind him, and trying to find a comfortable resting place among the many pairs of shoes Selina had brought with her.

Just as he got the closet door closed, there was a knock at Selina's bedroom door. Elena was back.

"Hi," she said as Selina opened the door. "Are you all set and everything?"

"Good morning," Selina replied. "And yes I am. I had a very pleasant night. Now what was it you wanted to tell me?"

"Well actually," Elena told her, "I have one thing I wanted to tell you and one thing I wanted to ask you: the first is, Jenna says breakfast will be done in about ten minutes if you want any, and the second thing is whether or not you've seen Jeremy today. I checked his bedroom but he wasn't there."

"He went out to get a paper," Selina said immediately. "He checked the one that was brought this morning and there was something wrong with it, so he said he was going to get another one. He should be back soon though."

"All right," Elena said. "See you downstairs in a few minutes?"

"Definitely."

As soon as she was gone, Selina hurried over to the closet, opened it, and let Jeremy out. She opened the door with such force that he fell out, along with a flood of shoes. "Did you hear that?" she asked him.

"Yeah," he said. "I did. "But do I really have to go outside and get a new paper? It's raining."

"Of course it is," Selina said. "What other reason would there be to need a new paper?" She paused. "I'm sorry, but it was the best lie I could come up with in such a short time. I'll do something to make it up to you, I promise."

"All right." He left to get his rain coat, and when Selina was sure there was no one around to see, she let him out the front door. Then, she headed into the kitchen where Jenna and Elena were waiting.

"Good morning, Sophia," Jenna greeted her brightly. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Yeah," Selina replied. "I had absolutely no trouble getting up this morning. Do you need any help getting things ready?"

"No," Jenna said smiling. "And even if I did, you're a guest. But it was kind of you to offer."

"No problem," Selina replied, taking a seat next to Elena at the table. "Can I assume that Elena told you where Jeremy went?"

"Yep," Jenna said. "She did. It sucks that they can't come up with a full proof way to keep papers dry when it rains."

"Doesn't it just, though?" Selina agreed. "Getting caught up on the news helps me wake up in the morning and if I can't because the print is all runny, well that just gets things off to a slow start. I mean, I know I could look stuff up online, but there's a part of me that just finds reading print so much more relaxing."

The other two nodded in agreement, and then they sat in awkward silence until Jeremy returned with the paper a few minutes later. "I'm back!" he called.

"Great," Jenna yelled back. "You wanna bring the paper into the kitchen?"

"Sure," Jeremy called. "I'll be right in."

"And don't forget to dry yourself off with the towel by the door," Elena reminded him. "We wouldn't want anybody slipping on puddles that get tracked in."

A few minutes later, Jeremy entered the kitchen looking as dry as a person who'd just been in a moderate downpour could look. "It looks like you made quite a bit this morning," he remarked, looking at everything that was spread out over the table. Eggs, bacon, and toast were just the beginning.

"I know," Jenna replied. "I had trouble sleeping last night because of the thunder and all, so I woke up early and just started cooking. And what you see before you," she said with a grand gesture at the table, "is the end result of my labors."

"Well, it looks great," Selina said warmly. "Would somebody pass me a cinnamon roll?"

The rest of breakfast, no one really spoke, except to ask someone else to pass a bit of food across or over. After everyone ate all they could, they put the leftovers in containers so they could be heated up in case anyone wanted them later, and then they all took part in getting dishes done.

"All right," Jenna said, once the last dish was in its proper place, "what is everyone going to do today? I assume we won't be going outside because of the rain."

"You'd be correct," Elena said. "I might head over to the boardinghouse and see Stefan later today."

Jenna looked at Jeremy. "What about you?"

"I thought I'd just hang around, do my homework, watch some movies. That sort of thing."

Jenna then looked at Selina apologetically. "I'm afraid there's not much to do around here when it rains," she said.

"Don't worry," Selina smiled at her. "I'll think of something." Then, she headed back to her room and got dressed. When she was looking through her overnight kit however, she realized to her dismay that she'd forgotten her hairbrush.

"Elena," she called. "Can I borrow your brush? I was so busy getting my clothes in order that I seem to have forgotten mine."

"Sure," Elena said, handing it to her. "Would you like to take my car and run over to the boardinghouse and get it?"

"Could I?" Selina asked. "Thank you, Elena. I owe you one!" She ran Elena's brush through her hair, then took Elena's keys and got in her car, driving it to the boardinghouse. She parked the car in the driveway and then let herself in.

"Well, well, well," said a voice behind her. "Despite your desperation to leave, you sure came back quickly."

"Don't flatter yourself, Damon." Selina said turning to him. "I didn't come back for you. I came back because I forgot my brush."

He stepped closer and began circling her.

"What are you _doing_?" she asked. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"As a matter of fact, there is," he told her. "You can tell me why Jeremy Gilbert's scent is all over you. Did you feed off him?"

"Of course not," Selina said.

"Well then why?" he asked.

"Why is none of your business," Selina said. "I can run my life as I please without any input from you."

"My God," Damon said. "You slept with him, didn't you? Does Elena know?"

Selina looked up at him. "No, she doesn't know. And so what if I did sleep with him? I had a very good reason." She paused. "What are you going to do about it now that you know? Scold me? Bite me? Rip my throat out and let my blood run? Do whatever you want. I really don't care anymore."

"No," Damon said, putting his hands on her shoulders and forcing her to look into his eyes. "I'm not going to do any of those things. You know why? Because they're what _you_ want. Despite your bravado, there's a part of you that feels guilty about what you did, and you think that my being mad at you will make the guilt go away. But I'm not in the mood to make you feel better."

"So what _are_ you going to do?" Selina asked.

"This," Damon replied, kissing her.

Despite herself, Selina found herself kissing him back, threading her fingers through his hair. He picked her up and brought her back to her old bedroom, throwing her down on the bed and unbuttoning her dress. After a few minutes however, he was done.

"What the hell?" Selina asked as he pulled away. She felt as if she'd just been electrocuted, or had all the air knocked out of her. And it was wonderful.

He came over and stood over her. "Sweetheart," he said sternly, "it's selfish of us to be here enjoying ourselves with the rest of the town in danger."

"No they aren't," Selina said, sitting up. "Lucy hasn't done anything yet. Let's wait until she does something first."

"You know you're right," he said, putting his arms around her and kissing her neck. "Let's wait until somebody gets and _then_ go out and save everyone else."

Just then, his phone went off abruptly and he pushed her away. "It's Stefan," he told her. "Elena met up with him and wants to know if you're all right."

Selina took the phone from him. "Elena, I'm fine. Just a little caught up, that's all. But I should be back in a little bit. Yes. Uh-huh. Bye, Elena."

She shut the phone and handed it back to Damon who set it on the dresser, then gazed at her speculatively.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Selina asked. "What are you trying to prove?"

"Oh," Damon said, looking at her. "So it's okay for you to be sexually manipulative and bring up all the people I've been with in the past, but when I do to you, it's a problem?"

"I'm never sexually manipulative!" Selina said.

"Oh, yeah?" Damon said. "What about last time? I know the only reason why you did it was so I wouldn't get mad at you about what happened with Lucy."

"And what were _you_ trying to manipulate?" Selina asked.

"Actually," Damon said, "I wasn't trying to manipulate anything. I was just trying to show you that what we have is real, no matter how much we try to deny it. And don't try to tell me that you didn't feel anything, because I know you did."

"But what about cutting it off?" Selina asked. "_That_ was to show me something, I'm sure."

"I was venting," he admitted. "Like I said, it gets so frustrating when things between us are going well, and then you find out about one of my past relationships and allow it to make you angry and unreachable instead of just _talking_ to me about it."

"I guess that's me being passive-aggressive, jealous and petty," Selina admitted.

"Why do you think you need to be like that?" Damon asked.

"Think about it," Selina told him. "Before I got turned, the last time I saw you was when you shipped off. Then, I got sick. It took 145 years for us to get back together. And they were agonizing for me. Every day I missed you, you can't imagine how much. After I killed Dr. Stensrund, I would sit in the parlor of his house and just wonder where you were, if you were okay, and most of all, if you missed me as much as I missed you. That's why I wanted to find the locket so badly. Because it was the only part of you that I had left. And to have to think about you being with other girls when I was here alone just really, well, it hurts a bit, you know?"

"What about the twenties?" he asked. "Georges Robaud and the artists' colony? You were in relationships then."

She laughed bitterly and shook her head. "I would hardly call those relationships. So we'd have sex every once in awhile. But we never _talked_. And they were so into switching partners that it was really hard to connect with anyone. Despite the fact that I was surrounded by people, I was always awfully lonely. So," she said, looking at him. "_Did_ you miss me as much as I missed you?"

Damon was quiet a moment. Finally, he said "you have to understand that one of the first things Katherine did when she and I got involved was make me forget about you." He smiled. "You should feel honored. She thought you were enough of a threat that that's what she had to do." He continued. "So, in a sense, no; I didn't miss you as much as you missed me, but I hid your picture and carried it with me wherever I went. I didn't know who it was, but I knew I liked her. And something told me that she was real and that if I could find her, my life would come back together, you know? I tried for years and years. I looked everywhere. But when I didn't find you, I guess I just gave up."

"And continued thinking of Katherine as your ideal woman?" Selina asked. "Often enough that you finally decided to bring her back?" She paused. "Why didn't you come back here and look for me?"

"Because I really didn't want to," he replied. "There were too many bad memories here. Katherine was lost to me, so I didn't have anyone, and, of course, the only option left was one meaningless relationship after another. I just turned off my emotions, and everything got easier."

"But?" Selina asked.

"But," Damon replied, taking a breath, "then I saw you at the Halloween party, wearing the same dress you wore the night we got engaged. I still had the image of you in my mind: the you I was used to rather than the you I had in front of me."

"And that, of course, was why I was such a huge disappointment in the beginning." Selina finished.

"Yeah," Damon said. "But I got used to you, and now I wouldn't have you any other way." He looked at her. "Feel better?"

"Yeah," she hugged him. "You?"

He nodded. "Now we better get you back to Elena's."

Selina wrinkled her nose. "After this, I'm not so sure I want to go back," she said.

"Incidentally," Damon asked, "Why _did_ you sleep with Elena's brother?"

Selina sighed. "Because he told me that that was the only way to keep him away from Lucy."

"Wow," he told her. " You're putting up with a lot to protect this town. If that's the reason you need to be at Elena's, then you definitely should go."

"You don't mind?" Selina asked him, surprised.

"Please, Selina," he said, grinning. "Why would I be jealous of a _human kid_? I'll even drive you if you want."

"Sure," she said, and led him out the door. "That'll probably be the only way to get me to go."

"Wat," she said, suddenly sprinting up the stairs and going back into the boardinghouse. She came back a few minutes later , clutching her hairbrush. "Almost forgot what I came here for," she said, holding it out.

"You know," Damon said as he got in the driver's seat and Selina took the passenger's seat next to him. "This situation has made me feel the need to give you some advice, a paraphrase from Queen Victoria."

"'We are not amused'?" Selina asked hopefully. "Are you giving me an out?"

"No," he shook his head and started the car. "That would be a direct quote. The paraphrase, for when you're lamenting what you have to do to keep Jeremy away from Lucy, is 'shut your eyes and think of Mystic Falls'."


	17. Past Heartbreak

When Selina and Damon reached Elena's house, he parked in the street and got out of the car, hurrying around to open her door for her. "Thank you," she said as he helped her out. She shut the door behind her and worked on getting up the curb.

"Sorry about this," Damon remarked as he grabbed her around the waist to steady her so she wouldn't fall flat on her face. "I probably could have picked a better parking spot, but I figured I wasn't going to be here very long."

"No problem," Selina replied as she finally boosted herself up on the curb despite the slick grass. "I got up eventually, didn't I?"

Damon stepped up next to her. "Are you going to be okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "Of course I am."

He put his arms around her and gave her a hug, and she did the same to him. For a moment, they just held on to one another, eyes closed, getting lost in the moment. Then, he had a vision: Selina, dressed in a blue velvet gown, complete with a hoopskirt, looking terrified and running for her life from something that was pursuing her. It lasted only a few seconds, but that was enough. He opened his eyes and gently pushed her away.

"What's the matter?" she asked, looking at him with concern. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he said, blinking. "I'll be fine." He turned away and began the walk back to the boardinghouse. "Call me later tonight," he said. "I want to be sure you're okay."

"I will," she called.

As soon as he was gone, Selina sighed and went back into the house. She was concerned about the sudden change in Damon's mood, and part of her really wanted to know what had happened to make him upset, but she figured that if he said he was okay, then he was capable of dealing with whatever it had been. She walked from room to room to see if she could find anyone, but after going through every room, she had to conclude that she was the only one around. When she got to the kitchen, she noticed the note on the fridge:

_Sophia,_

_Elena told me that you left this morning to go pick up something that you'd forgotten back at the boardinghouse. By the time you get back, I bet none of us will be here since the sun's finally decided to come out, and that's why I'm leaving you this note: so you'll know where everyone is. First, Elena is out with Stefan. I'm sure you have her cell number if you need to get a hold of her. I'm just out and about doing errands and later I'm meeting a friend for lunch. I should be back later this afternoon. Jeremy's out, I think he said at the park, and should be back later. Until then, it looks like you've got the house to yourself._

_Jenna_

Selina read the note over and nodded to herself. "That works," she said to herself. She opened the refrigerator, pulled out some of the leftovers from breakfast, and heated them up. To her surprise, they were actually still quite palatable. She was just finishing up when she heard the jingle of a key and the front door opening.

"Hello?" Elena called. "Anybody home? I brought Stefan back with me."

"I'm back," Selina called, picking up her dishes off the table and putting them in the sink. "Damon brought me back. Did you see that he parked your car in the street?"

"Yeah, I wondered about that," Elena replied, coming into the kitchen with Stefan close on her heels. "Listen," Elena said. "We were thinking about going out for coffee. You wanna come?"

"Sure," Selina nodded. "Are we taking your car or his?"

"We'll take mine," Stefan said.

"All right," Selina replied. "Lead the way."

They rode to the coffee shop in silence, but after they'd seated themselves at a table, and the waitress had taken their orders, they began to talk. "You seem cheerful," Elena said to Selina. "What happened to bring this on?"

"Damon and I made up," Selina replied. "And I don't think we'll have any major fights ever again."

"That's really good news," Elena said. "What brought the fight on this time?"

"Well," Selina said, "I brought Alaric some documents because he said he wanted to help us find out what happened to my mother. And then we got to talking about his wife that died, and he said that she was attacked by a vampire, and that that vampire was Damon. And then I got jealous and petty and reamed him out again. I know it's a bad thing to do every time one of his old relationships comes up, but if you think about it, we got engaged, and then all the craziness happened, and I didn't see him again until the Halloween party last year. When I think of all the girls he was with when I was here missing him, it upsets me a little, you know?"

"So," Stefan said carefully, "this fight happened because _to your knowledge_, you didn't see Damon until the Halloween party last year and you don't like the idea of him with other girls."

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "I just said that. What of it?"

"Nothing," Stefan said lightly, shaking his head and continuing to drink his coffee.

A few minutes later, much to Stefan, Elena, and Selina's surprise, Mayor Lockwood just happened by and stopped at their table. "Hello Mayor," Selina said. "Is there anything I can do for you? Has Tyler disappeared again?"

"No," Mayor Lockwood shook his head. "But I _do_ have a little surprise for you if you'll come along with me." He looked at Stefan and Elena. "You two don't mind if I borrow her for a little while, do you?"

They shook their heads and Selina finished her coffee, throwing the cup into a nearby trashcan and following the mayor out of the coffee shop to his car. "So," she said, "I know you can't tell me what the surprise is, but could you at least tell me the nature of the surprise? Is it good? Will I like it?"

"You will," Mayor Lockwood nodded. "And it has to do with your parents. Now, no more questions. All will be answered when we get to the house."

* * *

Back in the coffee shop, Elena and Stefan were still drinking their coffees and chatting. "So," Elena said, "when you were talking to Selina, what was all the emphasis about when you mentioned whether or not she'd seen Damon since he'd shipped out?"

"Well," Stefan said, "Even though Selina thinks she didn't see Damon between the time he shipped out and the Halloween party last year, she actually did; she just doesn't remember it. And if I'm not mistaken, neither does Damon."

"What do you mean?" Elena asked. "How can you remember something about her life that she doesn't remember?"

"Because it was bad," Stefan said gravely, his eyes averted. "Selina was in a lot of emotional pain because of Damon and I didn't want her to remember it, so I had Emily make a potion that would make her forget."

"And why doesn't Damon remember it?"

"I don't know that for sure," Stefan said, "But I bet Katherine made him forget everything that was connected with Selina, including the series of incidents after she was turned."

"What exactly happened?" Elena asked. "Can you tell me?"

"I'll do the best I can." He took a deep breath and began speaking._ "After Damon and I died, we found ourselves far away from home. I didn't know where we were at first, but Emily was with us. Told us that she and her brother had found us and had brought us to a place where we'd be safe from everyone who had stakes. I decided to explore the area. I told Damon I was leaving and Emily said she had better come with me in case anything bad happened. We walked into the woods, among the trees, and not long afterwards, I began to hear sobbing. I thought I was hearing things at first because it didn't seem like there would be anyone in the woods except Emily and myself. Emily and I followed the sound and found ourselves looking at a girl with messy, stringy black hair and a blue velvet dress curled in a ball on the forest floor crying her eyes out. I reached out a hand to comfort her, and when she looked me in the eyes, I was shocked to see that the girl was Selina._

"_When I asked her what happened, she tried to explain, but was so shaken she could barely get any words out. When she finally composed herself, I began to see that she was more surprised by seeing me than I was at seeing her. I decided to bring her back to where Damon still waited because I thought he'd be happy to see her. I couldn't have been more wrong. We got out of the woods and back to where we had been before. Damon was sitting on the shore looking out over the water. When I showed him who I'd brought with me, instead of being happy to see her, he frowned and lashed out._

"'_Why'd you bring her here?'" he asked me. "'Take her back to wherever you found her. I never want to see her again.'"_

"'_If I've done something to hurt you,'" Selina managed to get out, looking at him concernedly. 'I certainly didn't mean it. Can we talk about this?'" She looked as if she were going to start crying again. I didn't blame her._

"'_You want to talk?'" Damon asked her. "'No, never again. You're dead to me.'" Then, he strode over to her and grabbed her by the shoulders, forcing her up against a tree. She struggled but couldn't get away. His hand was around her throat and she was struggling to breathe. "'Now you go back to wherever it is you came from. If I don't ever see you again, it'll be too soon.'_

"_Then, he let her go and she began breathing in small, shallow gasps. There was a bruise on her neck from where he held on to her. She stared at him for a moment, opened her mouth as if she were going to say something, then quickly shut it, probably realizing that conversation was useless at that point. Instead, she just nodded and said 'Goodbye, Damon,' before walking away from him. I had been unable to move while Damon had been threatening her, but as soon as she spoke, I ran after her, Emily following me. Selina went back into the woods and put herself much in the same position in which we had found her and began sobbing again._

"'_He doesn't want me anymore, Stefan,'" she said to me after a little while. "'The only man I've ever loved and he doesn't want me anymore. What am I going to do?'_

"_I put my arms around her and tried to quiet her, and then I looked up at Emily. 'I know you don't approve of my penchant for doing good,'" I told her, "'but is there something you could do for Selina so that she forgets this ever happened?'"_

_Emily looked at me for a moment, then at Selina. "'There _is_ something I can do,_'" _she said finally. "'It will make her forget her pain for a time, but it isn't permanent.'"_

"'_Please,'" Selina implored. "Whatever you can do. I can't stand feeling this way.'"_

_Emily looked at her a moment, then nodded, pulled out a vial and went back down to the river. When she returned, the vial was full of water. She said some words over it and then handed it to Selina. 'Drink this,'" she said._

"'_What is it?'" Selina asked, eyeing it suspiciously. "'What will it do?'"_

"'_It will make you forget everything that's happened in the last twenty-four hours,'" Emily told her._

"'_That will be helpful,'" Selina replied, gulping it down. _

"_After that, I took Selina out of the woods and onto the main road. It was night then. I asked Selina if she had anywhere safe to go and she told me that she planned to stop by her mother's. I took her there, hugged her goodbye and wished her well, figuring that that would be the last time I'd ever see her."_

"Just a second," Elena said. "Are you telling me that Damon and Selina saw each other after you all were turned and that he tried to kill her?"

"Yeah," Stefan nodded. "Katherine probably tricked him into believing that she'd done something horrible to him."

"Like cheating on him with Dr. Stensrund after they swore eternal devotion to one another?"

"Right," Stefan said.

They then finished their drinks, threw the cups in the trash, and left the coffee shop.


	18. The Girl in the Blue Velvet Dress

Selina and Mayor Lockwood drove into the garage and the mayor put the car in park. Before getting out, he gave Selina a look. "You really want to know what the surprise is, don't you?" he asked.

"Yes," Selina nodded, unbuckling her seatbelt. "Of course I do."

She got out of the mayor's car and he followed her inside the house. "Where are we going?" she asked.

"The basement vault," he told her. "I'll lead the way." He led Selina down into one of the back rooms of the basement. In the back corner of the room was a door with a keypad lock. Selina turned around while he punched in the code and then followed him in.

As Selina looked around, she couldn't help but gasp. "My God," she said. "This is incredible. So much history in one place."

"Yes," the mayor said, grinning and putting a hand on her shoulder. "But what I want _you_ to have a look at is over here in this corner." He led her to one of the corners of the vault, where several items were set up like a display.

Selina got closer to them to get a better look. "But all this belongs to my parents," she said wonderingly, turning back to him. "Their letters, their diaries, their clothes, it's all here!"

"Well, not everything," the mayor reminded her. "We don't have the things you took back."

"Would you like me to bring them?" Selina asked. "I could spare them. I've looked them over back to front anyway."

"Don't you want to know what this is all for?" the mayor asked. "Aren't you the least bit curious?"

"Definitely," Selina replied.

At that moment, the doorbell rang distantly. "Just a moment," the mayor told Selina. "Someone's come to visit me and I'd like you to meet her. She works for the historical society and this was her idea."

As soon as the mayor was gone, Selina continued to explore the vault. She looked over her parents' diaries and discovered, curiously, that several of them were missing. Did the woman from the historical society know this? Where had they gone? Then, she noticed another section of the vault completely separate from the space that held her parents' artifacts. She went into that room and gasped. This room was full of _her _things! Her dresses, her diaries, her pictures.

She blinked and backed out of the room just in time to hear the mayor come back downstairs with his guest.

"Sophia," he said grandly, "may I present Lucy Andrews from the historical society. I brought her here to tell you about her plans for the exhibit."

Selina was glad that the mayor remembered to use her alias in front of other people, but when she saw who he had with him, her heart froze. There stood Lucy in plain daylight, next to the mayor, looking chummy with him even. She was probably up to something. "Hello, Miss Andrews," Selina said, careful not to look at Lucy directly.

"Hello, Miss Warren," Lucy replied. "The mayor tells me that you have some interest in my new exhibit, and why not? The Warrens are your family after all."

"Indeed they are," Selina replied stiffly.

"Have you had time to look around?" Lucy asked, her tone light.

"Yes, I have." Selina told her. "And I noticed something odd. Several of Matthew and Amelia Warren's journals seem to be missing. Are you aware of that?" She gazed at Lucy intently, as if trying to get her to confess to whatever she was planning just through the strength of her will.

"Of course I'm aware," Lucy replied without missing a beat. "Several of the journals had weak binding and were falling apart, so I sent them to my restoration team and they are being repaired as we speak. We want them to look their best after all."

"Why?" Selina asked. "Are you planning to do something with them?"

Lucy and the mayor looked at one another for a moment before turning back to Selina. "Actually, that's the surprise," the mayor told her. "We were thinking that since we found your mother's body, we would commemorate that by reinterring her in the cemetery among the founding families where she rightfully belongs and then setting up an exhibit that tells the story of her and her family."

"_Really?_" Selina asked, feeling a little stunned. Whatever she'd expected, it wasn't this.

"But we wanted to run it by you first though," Lucy said quickly. "In case you had any objections. If you do, then of course we'll scrap the whole project."

"What? No, of course I don't!" Selina came back to the present and shook her head vigorously. "I like it. I think it's a good idea."

"You do?" Lucy asked. "Well, that settles it. Do you want me to walk you through it?"

"Sure," Selina replied. She was getting confused. Something told her Lucy had a diabolical scheme in mind, but right now, she was being downright civil. Maybe it was because the mayor was here, and when the two of them were alone, then things would begin to unravel.

"Well, as you've probably already realized," Lucy said, interrupting her thoughts, "in this room are the artifacts that pertain to Amelia and Matthew Warren: Journals, letters, photographs, things of that sort. We'll arrange them chronologically, beginning with the journals each wrote as a young person with pertinent entries blown up so that they can be read by everyone who comes and looks, followed by the letters exchanged during their courtship, to their marriage certificate, their adult journals, etc."

"Wow," Selina replied. "That might take awhile. There's so much here."

"I know," Lucy nodded. "But it's going to be worth it." She paused. "And that's not all. If you'll follow me, I'll show you part two of the exhibit."

Selina and the mayor followed Lucy into the other part of the vault that held all of Selina's things. "In here," Lucy began speaking again. "In here are all the items we have that pertain to Matthew and Amelia's daughter Selina. Personally, I like working with her things a lot more than I do Matthew and Amelia's I don't know why, though." She led Selina and the mayor over to a dress on a dressmaker's form. It was two shades of blue velvet, one light, one dark, and the sleeves were off-the-shoulder.

"This is beautiful," Selina breathed. "And in such good condition too."

"I found it in the back of a closet at the home of Dr. Roger Stensrund," Lucy said. "Along with several other dresses that I later discovered also belonged to Selina Warren." She paused and then said thoughtfully, "maybe that means the story of the Lady in Red is true after all, and Selina _did_ cheat on her soldier fiancé."

Selina felt as if she'd been punched in the stomach. Lucy was trying to make her lose her temper in front of the mayor, but she wouldn't give her the satisfaction. She took a deep breath, and gave Lucy a sweet, serene smile. "Would it be all right if I touched it?" she asked. "I know you historians frown on getting fingerprints all over prized artifacts and all, but since this dress is in such good condition…"

"Sure, go ahead," Lucy replied.

Selina reached out and stroked the bodice of the gown, but just as she did so, she saw something in her mind's eye: her, in the dress, running from something that pursued her as if her very life were at stake. She was crying and her dress and hair were wet, soaked with rain. The vision lasted for only a few seconds, and when it was over, she looked up and saw the mayor and Lucy staring back at her.

"Sophia," the mayor asked her after a moment. "Are you all right?"

"Of course," Selina replied uneasily. She looked at Lucy. "This is really wonderful, and I can't wait to see the finished product at Amelia Warren's reinterring." Then, she turned to the mayor. "I'm not feeling so well. I think I need to go back home and lie down."

"Well, do you want me to drive you?" the mayor called after her as she stumbled toward the stairs.

"No," Selina called back. "Once I get out in the fresh air, I should be okay to get home on my own."

She continued to stumble through the house until she reached the front door and threw it open, getting herself out into the sunshine. She walked away from the manor and leaned against a streetlamp, taking several deep breaths. What had that vision been? A product of an overactive imagination, no doubt. Fear of what Lucy had planned. An effect of being reunited with her old things? But she'd had her dresses in her possession for years and nothing like that had ever happened before.

That dress. She remembered wearing it, of course although she hadn't since she'd been turned. That probably had something to do with why it had been in the _back_ of the closet. She'd undoubtedly worn it at a point when something bad had happened in her life and afterward had no wish to be reminded of the incident, so she'd hid the dress away where she wouldn't even have to look at it. She just wished she remembered what the incident was.

She began walking and eventually found herself back at Elena's house. She opened the door, grateful that Jenna had left her a key, and headed into the kitchen. "Hello?" she called out. "Anybody home?"

"I am!" a voice called back. A moment later, Jeremy appeared, carrying a picnic basket.

"Jeremy!" Selina said. "What's the basket for?"

"Well," he said, putting it down on the kitchen table, "I thought that since it's such a nice day, you and I could go have a picnic in the park. Are you up for it? Or have you eaten already?"

"No, I haven't," Selina shook her head. "And it sounds like a good idea to me."

Jeremy wrote a note for Elena and Jenna in case they came back and then he put the picnic basket and a cooler in the backseat of Jenna's second car, an old clunker which got lousy gas mileage and had three stuck windows. But Jenna was attached to it, so it stayed in the garage and was only driven in emergencies.

Selina hopped in the driver's seat and Jeremy sat next to her. The drive to the park was short, and despite the nice day, it wasn't difficult for them to find a space at the park to spread out. But just as they were getting to dessert, Selina's expansive mood was shattered.

"Look," Jeremy observed. "There's Tyler Lockwood, headed this way. I wonder what he wants."

Selina sighed and got up. "You stay here. I'll go see."

She strode toward him, and when she reached him, she saw that he was frowning.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" Selina asked. "Jeremy and I are on a picnic because it's so nice out."

"That's not all, is it?" Tyler asked. "Are you and he involved?"

"No, of course not," Selina replied, laughing weakly.

"Why him and not me?" Tyler asked. "He's a kid."

"Well," Selina said, "he's also not my distant cousin."

"So you _are_ sleeping with him," Tyler said.

Selina sighed. "He told me it's the only way to keep him from Lucy."

"So if _I _was in danger from Lucy, you'd sleep with me?" Tyler asked. "In case you don't remember, I'm the one she kidnapped and nearly killed. She didn't do that with Gilbert."

"Yes, she did," Selina shot back. "You saw it! She duped both of you. What I'm doing right now is a preemptive strike." She paused. "I'd have to be out of my right mind to sleep with you." Then, before he could say another word, she turned on her heel and walked back to Jeremy, the rest of their picnic finishing without incident.

* * *

That night, after he got off the phone with Selina, Damon had a couple of drinks and then went to bed. He was still shaken by the vision of her that he'd had earlier in the day; the sight of her running for her life from some unknown assailant had worried him, although it had clearly happened several years ago. Trying to relax, he climbed into his and Selina's bed, doing his best to ignore the fact that her side was empty. He pulled the covers over himself, and shut his eyes.

_When he opened them again, he was surprised to see that he wasn't alone in bed anymore. Katherine was with him, telling him how it would be once she had given him her blood.. "Just think," she said, "the two of us together forever. Think about what we're going to do. Think about-"_

_Just then, his bedroom door swung open. "Hello Damon," Selina said, "I just came to-" she broke off and froze as her gaze went in the direction of the bed. She frowned as Katherine turned. "Katherine, why are you here?"_

_Katherine hissed and jumped off the bed, striding toward her sister. "I'm here," she said, grinning wickedly, "because you've missed your chance, Selina." _

"_I don't think so," Selina said. She produced a wooden lance from behind her and whacked Katherine soundly over the head with it, and she fell to the floor, unconscious. As soon as Selina was sure that Katherine was no longer able to move, she ran over to the bed. "My sister, Damon?" she asked. "Thank God I got here in time, otherwise we would have all been in trouble."_

_He looked at her, stunned. He never thought he'd see her again, and here she was. "Father told me you were dead," he finally managed to get out. She was wearing a blue velvet dress and she looked beautiful._

"_No," Selina said quietly. "Dr. Stensrund saved me by turning me into a vampire. And afterwards, he was acting very oddly. He was acting as if he was in love with me. That's why your necklace is gone; he hid it somewhere and I still have to find it." She paused and then got into the bed with him. "But I've come home to you."_

_He stared at her in amazement, unable to speak. Finally, he took her in his arms and kissed her neck._

"_No," she said, pulling away. "I can't. I don't have much time before-" she sighed, biting her lip. "I can't. Coming here was a bad idea, I-" she moved as if she wanted to leave the room, but he grabbed her arm, keeping her near him. "What is it, honey? What do you need?"_

_She turned back to him. "I need blood, Damon. It's been awhile since I've fed and—and I just need it so bad."_

_He nodded. "Take it from me."_

_She gasped and shook her head. "No. No, I can't."_

_He kissed her. "Please let me do this," he said. "Since you're as good as dead, what else can I do for you?"_

_She sighed and nodded. "All right. If you're certain that's what you want."_

"_It _is_," he said._

_She put her lips to his neck, then he felt a sting. He held on to her tightly, and then relaxed as she began to drink from him. After a few moments, she released him and he felt curiously light. "Thank you," she said to him. Then, she turned and jumped off the bed._

"_Wait!" he said._

_She turned around. "What?"_

"_Aren't you going to give me some of yours?" he asked. "I want to be with you and that's the only way now."_

"_All right," she said. "Do you have a knife anywhere?"_

"_In the top drawer," he said, pointing to his dresser. _

_She opened the drawer and pulled the knife out. Then, she climbed next to him in bed again and drew the knife along her arm._

_He watched in horrified fascination as her ruby red blood welled up. When she offered him her arm, he took it and drank without hesitation._

_A second late, the door burst open again, his father on the other side. When he saw what Selina was doing, he pulled a stake from his pocket and advanced on her._

"_No, Father, no!" he cried as his father grabbed Selina by the hair and put the stake to her throat. She struggled for a moment, then turned her head and bit his hand. He let her go and she ran out of his room, presumably toward the stairs that would lead her to the lower level and her way out of the house. A moment later, his father returned. "That was Selina, Father," he'd said quietly. "The girl you always called the daughter you never had. And you tried to kill her."_

"_No, son," his father had said. "That was not Selina. That was a monster who looked like her. She is lost to us and the best thing for you now is to forget all about her."_

"_But father," he'd said, "she's out there all alone. She could be killed!"_

_His father had shrugged. "So much the better. One less vampire to worry about."_

_His father had then left, ordering Damon to go back to bed. Instead, Damon had gone to Stefan's room._

"_Are you aware," he asked his brother, "that Selina is a vampire now?"_

_Stefan had nodded. "Yes," he'd said. "She came to see me before she saw you."_

"_Well," he'd told his brother, "Father found out about her condition and tried to get rid of her. She managed to escape and now she's out there all alone. She could be killed, especially since everyone's looking for vampires now."_

"_I'll go find her," Stefan had said. "You stay here. I'll go get her."_

_He'd nodded and watched Stefan leave. What he hadn't known was that Stefan had had Katherine's blood in him at that point, and that their father was waiting on the porch with a gun in case one of them decided to go after Selina. That night, because of him, Stefan became a vampire._

_When he returned to his room, Katherine was awake again, and waiting in his bed. He crawled in next to her. "Selina's going to be killed," he said._

"_I know," Katherine had told him. "But you don't need her. She doesn't love you like I love you. Like you love me. She cheated on you with that awful Dr. Stensrund. She was going to run away with him. You love me. You need me. You'd die for me."_

_Then she'd kissed him, and he'd spent the rest of the night lost in bliss._

Damon, remembering everything, woke up screaming Selina's name.


	19. You Can't Go Home Again

Sitting up slowly, Damon took a few deep breaths and tried to calm himself. Finally, he shoved the covers aside and got out of bed, putting on a shirt with his shorts and heading back downstairs. He got another glass out and filled it, drinking it slowly. It was halfway empty when Stefan came downstairs and looked at him keenly.

"Are you all right?" he asked. "Is something wrong?"

Damon put the glass down on a small wooden table and took a seat in the brown leather armchair next to it. "Selina was the one who turned me," he said.

"_What?"_ Stefan asked. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Damon nodded. "I just had this dream. But it really wasn't a dream I don't think. Katherine and I were together, and Selina came bursting into the room. She knocked Katherine out with a branch she'd fashioned like a lance. Then, when she was certain Katherine couldn't move anymore, Selina got into bed with me, because we were in my room. She told me she needed blood, so I gave it to her because at that point, that was all I _could_ do for her. Afterward, she wanted to leave, but I convinced her to give me some of her blood, too."

"Because that was the only way that you could be with her," Stefan said quietly.

"Yeah," Damon nodded, picking up the glass and taking a drink. "But Father came in and found us. He pulled Selina out of my bed, grabbed her by the hair and put a stake to her throat, but she managed to bite him and get away. Then, Father told me that since Selina had become a monster, I was to forget about her."

"That's why she ran from the house," Stefan said. "I never did find her when I left to look. The next time I saw her, she was curled up in a ball in the woods, crying her eyes out, probably because of what Father did."

"And she was wearing a blue velvet dress…" Damon's voice trailed off.

"Do you remember seeing her any time after that?" Stefan prodded gently.

"Yes," Damon nodded. "After Emily found us, you brought Selina back, didn't you?"

"I did," Stefan nodded. "But things didn't go as well as I hoped. Katherine had addled your brain enough that you didn't recognize Selina as you should have."

"I remember," Damon said, gulping down the last of his drink. "I hurt her. Ordered her to go away. Told her I never wanted to see her again. And then you took her away. Where did the two of you go?" he asked.

"She told me she wanted to go to her mother's," Stefan told him. "I took her there and told her goodbye. I really didn't think I'd see her again after that."

"Do you think _she_ remembers any of this?" Damon asked. "I don't think she does, otherwise it would be one more thing from my past for her to be mad about."

"I don't think she does either," Stefan said. "At least not yet. I had Emily give her something that would make her forget, at least for a time, anyway. But if you remember all of it now, she can't be far behind."

* * *

After hanging up the phone once she ended her conversation with Damon, Selina got up off the bed and went into the closet to get her pajamas. She put them on slowly, praying that Jeremy wouldn't visit her. She just wanted to be alone tonight, and worry about everything tomorrow. Pajamas on, she climbed into bed and pulled the covers over her, slowly closing her eyes…

_It was night, and she was back at Dr. Stensrund's. He'd gone out on a call in a nearby town, telling her that he wouldn't be back until tomorrow. That was good. It was the perfect time to make her escape. She couldn't live here anymore; every day killing, killing, killing. When she was absolutely sure she was alone, she pulled the covers off herself and slowly got out of bed. She grabbed a match and carefully lit the small lantern next to her bed. She took it in hand and carefully made her way down the stairs and through the house to the front door, managing not to trip over anything in the dark._

_But when she reached the front door, she paused. After she'd left, where would she go? Surely word had gotten 'round town that she was dead. Finally, she decided to just go back to the place she considered home now: the Salvatores'. She picked up the lantern, opened the door, and stepped outside. But just as she closed the door behind her, there was a clap of thunder, a flash of lighting, and it began to rain. The rain began to soak her dress and doused her lantern, but thankfully, her vampirism made her able to see well enough in the night without it._

_She began to make her way through the vacant streets. The puddles were deep and her dress, shoes and stockings became soaked with every step. Her hair was becoming a tangled mess. And once, when her mind was distracted, she tripped over a tree branch and fell head over heels into a puddle of muddy water. By the time she reached the Salvatores' front door, she was in pain, tired, breathing heavily, and pretty sure she looked like a drowned rat. She nearly collapsed on their front porch, but the door handle held her steady. She gave the door one long, hard knock and prayed that someone was still up to hear her. _

_Just when she thought no one was going to answer the door, it opened quite suddenly, and she'd found herself face to face with Damon and Stefan's father. "Hello, sir," she'd said calmly. "It's wet out here, may I come in?"_

_He'd looked at her oddly for a moment, then leaned closer squinting. "Selina?" he'd said finally. "My God, Selina is that you?"_

"_Yes," she'd nodded, tucking a strand of wet, straggling hair behind her ear._

_He stood frozen for a moment before coming back to himself, taking her gently by the hand. "Come in, dear," he'd said, pulling her into the house._

"_I'm sorry I'm so wet," she said apologetically, watching water drip on the floor and the rug._

"_It's all right," he'd said. "How are you? I heard from your mother yesterday that you were dead."_

_She nodded. "And Dr. Stensrund thought I was," she said. "But it turned out to be a mistake. They buried me, you know. That's why I'm so dirty."_

"_Well thank goodness he caught it in time," he'd said and paused. "Finding out you're alive, that will do your mother a world of good."_

"_Why?" Selina asked. "Is something wrong with her?"_

_He'd paused. "She's ill," he replied at last. "Ever since Dr. Stensrund told her of your death, she's been drinking, pretty much every day. And she doesn't leave the house anymore, or reply to invitations. I tried to visit yesterday, but she turned me away."_

"_My God," she said, feeling herself begin to tear up. "Poor Mama. I definitely will make an effort to visit her. Thank you for letting me know."_

_He'd nodded. "Would you like to change your clothes?" he asked, indicating her wet, mud-soaked dress, which would be very difficult to clean._

"_No, thank you sir," she'd said, shaking her head. "I think I'll just go tell Damon and Stefan I'm all right."_

_He'd nodded. "You do that." As she'd turned away to go up the stairs, he'd said one more thing: "Selina, I'm glad you're all right. And that you're home."_

_She'd smiled at him and nodded. "Thank you, sir. I'm glad too."_

_Then, she'd gone up the stairs. Stefan's bedroom was closest, so she knocked and waited for him to get up and answer it._

_Stefan's reaction was much the same as his father's. Undoubtedly, he'd heard that she was dead as well. "But you're here," he'd said in a tone of amazement. "How can you be here?"_

"_Dr. Stensrund was mistaken about my death and buried me prematurely," she'd said. As soon as the door was closed, she'd moved to sit on his bed. "That's not true, actually," she whispered. "Dr. Stensrund turned me into a vampire. That's how I'm still alive. Well, at least in a sense."_

_He'd looked at her in surprise. "I'm amazed you got here safely if that's the truth," he said._

"_It is," she said, baring her fangs to him. "See?" she paused. "Why?"_

"_Everyone in town is looking for vampires now," he told her. "They're chaining them up and dragging them away."_

"_Goodness," she'd said. "It _is_ lucky I got here all right."_

"_I can't believe Dr. Stensrund is a vampire," Stefan said. _

"_Believe it," she told him. "Because it's true."_

"_I also can't believe he let you come here alone in the middle of the night."_

"_Oh," she'd told him. "He doesn't know that I'm gone. He left yesterday to go see patients in Richmond and is coming back tomorrow."_

"_So you left on your own?" Stefan asked. "That wasn't a good idea. You could have been hurt!"_

_She smiled and shook her head. "I don't think so, Stefan. Not anymore." She grinned at him one last time and got up. "I think I'll go tell your brother the good news now, if you don't mind." She walked over to the door and Stefan held it open for her. "Thank you," she'd said as she'd left him. Then, she'd walked next door to Damon's bedroom. And this time, she didn't knock. "Hello, Damon," she'd said as the door swung open. "I just came to-" she'd broken off as she noticed that her sister was in Damon's bed with him. "What are you doing here, Katherine?"_

_As soon as she spoke, Katherine had turned and jumped off the bed, striding toward her. "I'm here because you lost your chance, Selina."_

"_I don't think so, she whispered. She pulled out a wooden lance and soundly beat Katherine over the head with it, rendering her unconscious. As soon as she was sure Katherine could no longer move, she ran over to Damon's bed. "My sister, Damon?" She'd asked him, giving him a look. "Thank God I got here in time otherwise we all would have been in trouble."_

_He was looking at her in wonder. Or it could have been horror if she considered the state of her dress. "Father told me you were dead," he finally got out._

"_No," she'd said quietly. "Dr. Stensrund saved me by turning me into a vampire. And afterwards, he was acting very oddly. He was acting as if he was in love with me. __That's why your necklace is gone; he hid it somewhere and I still have to find it." She paused and then got into the bed with him. "But I've come home to you."_

_He'd stared at her in amazement, unable to speak. Finally, he'd taken her in his arms and kissed her neck._

"_No," she'd said, pulling away. "I can't. I don't have much time before-" she'd sighed, biting her lip. "I can't. Coming here was a bad idea, I-" she'd moved as if she wanted to leave the room, but he grabbed her arm, keeping her near him. "What is it, honey? What do you need?"_

_She'd turned back to him. "I need blood, Damon. It's been awhile since I've fed and—and I just need it so bad."_

_He'd nodded. "Take it from me."_

_She'd gasped and shook her head. "No. No, I can't."_

_He'd kissed her. "Please let me do this," he'd said. "Since you're as good as dead, what else can I do for you?"_

_She'd sighed and nodded. "All right. If you're certain that's what you want."_

"_It _is_," he'd said._

_She'd put her lips to his neck. He held on to her tightly, and then relaxed as she began to drink from him. After a few moments, she released him and he felt curiously light. "Thank you," she said to him. Then, she turned and jumped off the bed._

"_Wait!" he'd said._

_She'd turned around. "What?"_

"_Aren't you going to give me some of yours?" he'd asked. "I want to be with you and that's the only way now."_

"_All right," she'd said. "Do you have a knife anywhere?"_

"_In the top drawer," he'd said, pointing to his dresser. _

_She'd opened the drawer and pulled the knife out. Then, she'd climbed next to him in bed again and drew the knife along her arm._

_He'd watched in horrified fascination as her ruby red blood welled up. When she'd offered him her arm, he took it and drank without hesitation._

_Just at that moment, his father burst in the room. When he saw what they were doing, he'd pulled out a stake and advanced on her._

_Damon had cried for him to stop, but it was to no avail. His father had grabbed her by the hair and put the stake to her throat. She'd struggled for a little while before biting his hand and managing to break free. Then, she'd headed for the stairs and a way out of the house, thinking that she'd never see Damon or Stefan again._

_But she'd been wrong. The next day, Stefan found her crying in the woods. Strangely enough, he had Emily with him. He said he knew where Damon was, and that he could take her to him. She'd gone eagerly. But when she arrived, she realized that he'd changed. He was angry and sullen. When she'd tried to get him to explain why, he'd only ordered her to leave and not come back, after strangling her._

_Realizing that Katherine had probably gotten to him, and thus talking would get her nowhere, she'd told him goodbye._

_Stefan and Emily had followed a few minutes later, and Stefan asked Emily to give her a potion to make her forget her troubles if only temporarily…_

Selina sat up, gasping. She sprang out of bed and ran down the hall to Elena's bedroom, rapping on the door.

"What? What is it?" Elena asked sleepily after she answered the door.

"If I make a pot of coffee, will you drive me to the boardinghouse?" Selina asked. "I really need to talk to Damon about something. It's urgent."

"All right," Elena replied after a moment. "You go make the coffee and write up a note for Jenna while I get dressed."

Selina nodded and when Elena got downstairs, the note was written, and Selina handed her a full cup of coffee, waiting for her to drink it. After Elena had finished and washed the cup out, they headed to the car.

As Elena started it up, she looked at Selina. "Can I ask what's so bad that you need to see Damon at four in the morning, or is it private?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "I just remembered something very interesting. It seemed like a dream, but it actually happened."

"What?" Elena asked.

"I saw Damon and Stefan after I left Dr. Stensrund's," Selina said. "Damon wanted us to exchange blood once he found out about my being a vampire."

"_Oh_," Elena said. "So it was _your_ blood Damon had in him when he died, not Katherine's."

"Exactly," Selina said. "And I thought I'd tell him, in case he didn't know."

When they arrived at the boardinghouse, Selina was out of the car like a shot. Elena followed at a more leisurely pace.

"Hey, Stefan." She said when he answered the door. "Selina has something that she needs to tell Damon. Is he still up?"

"Yeah," Stefan nodded.

Damon was still sitting in the armchair. At the sight of Selina, he stood up and strode toward her. "What's the matter?" he asked. "Are you okay?"

"I just remembered something," she told him. "It was _my_ blood you had in you when you changed, not Katherine's. And when your father found out what I was, he tried to stake me."

Damon went still. "You remember that?"

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "You don't seem very shocked by it like I thought you would be."

"It all came back to me too, earlier." He told her.

"Oh," Selina replied, deflating and taking a seat in his armchair.

The four of them stood in silence for a moment, then Elena said, "on a completely different topic, what did the mayor want when he took you away earlier?"

"Oh, that," Selina said. "Well, apparently, they want to commemorate the discovery of my mother's body by burying her with the rest of the founding families, and then the historical museum is going to put on an exhibit about my parents. And me."

"That sounds cool," Elena replied.

"It _is,_" Selina said. "For the most part."

"What's wrong with it?" Stefan asked.

"Lucy's in charge of the exhibit," Selina said. "She's masquerading as a member of the historical society and has gotten herself into the mayor's good graces. And that's not the worst part of it: the exhibit about my parents has all their old journals in it, but when I looked things over, two of my mother's journals from her childhood were gone as well as two that Daddy kept when he and Mama were first married and when I was born."

"Do you think Lucy took them?" Elena asked.

"I have no doubt she did," Selina said.

"But what could be in them that she would be interested in?" Stefan asked.

"I don't know," Selina replied, shaking her head. "But I have a feeling that whatever it is is the key to her plans."


	20. Can't Fight the Moonlight

"Do you know specifically what's in the journals that Lucy would want to look at?" Elena asked.

Selina shook her head. "No, I don't. Like I said, they were from Mama's childhood and when I was very young. I don't see how I would have any reason at all to have memorized what was in them."

"Well, you knew that those were the ones that were missing," Elena told her.

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "But anyone who could count would know that. The journals were arranged chronologically, and one of Mama's that was missing was from 1835, when she was eight years old, another from when she was eleven in 1838 and the ones of Daddy's that were missing were from 1845-46. My parents were married in 1845, and I was born the next year."

She stood up from the armchair and took a deep breath, letting it out with a _whoosh._ "I need to walk around, you guys. Would you mind if we continued this discussion somewhere else, like in a smaller room?"

"No," Stefan shook his head. So did Elena and Damon. They walked to a smaller anteroom near the kitchen, which contained oil cloth-covered chairs and lots of dust. They worked on getting everything cleaned up, and then Stefan looked around in dismay. "There are only three chairs here," he said when he noticed that Selina was still standing. "Here, I'll go grab one from the kitchen."

"No," Selina shook her head. "Stefan, that's really not necessary." But he just waved her concerns away and went to get another chair. Elena followed, leaving Selina and Damon alone in the anteroom.

"Where were you planning on sitting if you don't have a chair?" Damon asked her.

"Your lap," Selina replied smoothly. "Do you mind?"

"Of course not," Damon smiled. "Come here."

By the time Stefan and Elena came back with the chair, Selina was comfortably settled in, with Damon's hands firmly around her waist.

"Oh, my God," Elena said, stopping stock still in the doorway so that Stefan, who was carrying the chair behind her, hit her in the legs with it. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped a little.

"_What_?" Selina asked. She gave the two of them a devilish grin as the other girl began moving again. "I told you it was unnecessary to bring in another chair." She looked at Elena. "And you wiped that shocked, holier-than-thou look off your face. We hear the two of you having sex all the time, but do we complain? No, we sure as hell don't. So stop being so judgmental and I'll tell you what else I think about what Lucy has planned."

"That was _good_," Damon whispered. Selina bit her lip on a smile.

As soon as Elena had reseated herself and Stefan had returned from putting the extra chair back in the kitchen, Selina began talking again.

"About Lucy's plan: I know for sure that it has to do with me," she said. "I think she's going to use me to destroy the town."

"What makes you think that?" Stefan asked.

"Well, why else would she want my parents' journals?" Selina asked. "And remember how I went to Lucy's house after I found out the body the sheriff had found was Mama's?"

"You mean, the time you went to Lucy's house after we specifically told you not to?" Stefan asked. "The time when you promised Elena and me that you would call Damon to come and get you to take you straight home so you could rest?"

"I _did_ call," Selina replied defensively. "It was just that he wasn't home."

"Oh, so now it's my fault?" Damon asked. "Well, it just so happens that I remember that message you left me. It said that you were going to Lucy's and wouldn't be back until late. You didn't mention anything about needing to be picked up from school."

"Well anyway," Selina said, quickly moving on. "When I went to her house, she attacked me, choked me. She said, and I quote: 'here's the deal: I don't want to hurt you, but if you ever try that again, I will make you _very, very_ sorry. Do you understand me? I have more power then you can fathom, and what happened with the police officer, your cousin, and that Gilbert boy was only the beginning. We can do wonders together, Selina. You can either come _with _me, and the town will be spared any danger, or you can oppose me, and have to live with the guilt that you have doomed everyone. What do you say'?"

"What _did_ you say?" Elena asked.

"Well I told her to go to hell, of course," Selina replied. "Do you think in a million years I would do anything to hurt this town?"

"And what did Lucy say after that?" Elena asked.

"It was a bit creepy, really," Selina replied. "She said 'You don't really have a choice. You'll side with me eventually, whether you like it or not'."

"Wow," Elena said. "That doesn't sound good. What do you think she meant by that?"

Selina shook her head. "I have no idea. That's the problem. I have to be on my guard all the time because I just never know when she might pull something. I mean, you don't choke somebody and threaten them, and do absolutely nothing to see it through." She paused and looked at Damon. "Well, except for you, that is."

"You remember _that_ too?" Damon asked.

Selina nodded. "Yeah, but I guess I don't blame you. We were all screwed up at that point."

"Well," Damon said, "It sounds to me like Lucy really wants to get you to join her in her evil ways. Probably by force."

"But she said she didn't want to hurt Selina," Elena countered. "If she forced her, there would probably be some injury involved. There has to be another, less violent solution." At that moment, she let out a huge yawn. "But I don't think we're going to get to it now," she said. "I need to lie down, now."

"Me too," Selina agreed, shifting slightly.

"Why don't the two of you stay here for awhile, until you're rested?" Stefan suggested, looking at Elena keenly. "If you tried to drive back now, you'd probably fall asleep while on the road."

"All right," Elena said. She and Selina left the room and headed to Selina's old bedroom.

"Do you want a nightgown or something to change into?" Selina asked. "I still have a few here that I didn't bring to your house."

"Sure, thanks." Elena told her. "I noticed you didn't bother changing into regular clothes at all."

Selina looked down at her gray pajama shorts and white camisole with white lace around the top. "I didn't want to bother," she replied. "I figured this was how we'd end up."

"Is there a bathroom here somewhere?" Elena asked.

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "Follow me."

She and Elena crowded into the bathroom that was adjacent to her room. "Did you bring a toothbrush?" Selina asked. "I have some extras of those too if you didn't."

"Wow," Elena replied. "You're prepared for everything, aren't you?"

"Well," Selina replied, shrugging. "You never know when someone's going to drop by."

As they were brushing their teeth, Elena paused for a moment, taking the toothbrush out of her mouth and gestured with it, getting flicks of saliva and toothpaste on Selina's mirror. "I just had a crazy thought," she said. "You know how we aren't sure exactly how your mother died?" she said to Selina. "What if, even though people thought she was dead and gone all this time, she was actually alive?"

Selina allowed herself a little laugh at Elena's expense. "She was either shot or beaten over the head. It's pretty difficult to survive something like that. Besides, even if that _was_ the case, she'd definitely be dead by now."

"I know," Elena replied, putting the toothbrush back in her mouth. "It was just an idea. And when I was talking about being alive, I meant after she disappeared in 1864. What if, say, when she left Mystic Falls, she went to Charleston and lived out the rest of her days with your uncle Andrew, or something?"

"But what about the body?" Selina asked.

"I don't know," Elena replied. "Like I said, this was just a suggestion." She and Selina rinsed out their toothbrushes, left the bathroom, and headed their separate ways, bidding one another good night.

"Are you all right?" Damon asked Selina when she arrived in their room. "You seem like something's bothering you."

"I don't know," Selina replied, shaking her head and climbing into bed next to him. "I just can't help but worry about Lucy's up to. I would feel so much better if I knew what she had planned."

* * *

As soon as Lucy woke up and dressed that morning, she grabbed the journals and headed to the Grill. She was meeting a friend there to tell her what she'd found.

"Lucy!" called a voice as soon as she entered the place. She held the books tighter to her chest and advanced toward the sound of the voice that had called her.

The woman sitting on the other side of the booth was of medium height when standing with brown hair and slightly cold brown eyes.

"Hello, Isobel," Lucy greeted her, taking the seat across from her in the booth and plunking the journals down.

"Hey," Isobel replied. "I was surprised to get your call."

"Well," Lucy said, "I called because I need your help with something." She pushed the journals toward Isobel. "It has to do with these."

"Some dusty, old books?" Isobel asked derisively. "Don't tell me that's all you brought me down here for is to look at some dusty old books."

"Don't be stupid," Lucy replied. "It has something to do with what's _in_ the dusty old books."

"Who're Matthew and Amelia Warren?" Isobel asked, looking each of the journals over.

"Matthew was a man I converted to vampirism, and Amelia was his wife," Lucy replied stiffly.

"You _turned_ a married man?" Isobel asked, grinning wickedly. "Good for you. I never thought you had it in you."

"It wasn't like that," Lucy said, rolling her eyes. "I met him when I was working as a nurse during the Mexican American War. He had typhoid, and I thought letting him die would be a waste."

"Oh." The grin quickly left Isobel's face. "If that's all it was, you really need to work on your stories. I knew it was too good to be true."

"Yeah, well, come back to the house with me and I'll explain what's going on," Lucy told her, picking the journals up again and letting Isobel lead her out the door.

When they arrived back at Dr. Stensrund's house, they went into one of the many living rooms and Lucy put the journals on the coffee table. "Now, to continue," Lucy said. "There's a vampire in this town named Selina. She was Matthew Warren's daughter and I'm worried about her."

"Why?" Isobel asked.

Lucy sighed huffily. "Just because you don't give a damn about anyone besides yourself doesn't mean I can't care about people."

"My God," Isobel said, giving Lucy another sly look. "Selina's your daughter, isn't she? You and Matthew knew each other before you became vampires and had a child together without letting his wife know!"

"No," Lucy said. "The first time I saw Matthew was in the war hospital. Besides, Selina was born about eighty years too late to be my daughter. Amelia was her mother."

"When were you turned?" Isobel asked.

"Around the beginning of the Revolutionary War," Lucy said. "Father and I lived in Boston back then, and he was a Patriot. When General Washington asked him if he would do medical work for the colonial militia, he accepted immediately. I watched what Father did and was touched by it. That's what made me want to become a nurse in the first place.

"Just we were to leave to meet the troops, my father remarried. My mother had died of tuberculosis when I was young, and I suppose he was lonely. Anyway, the woman had a son who was in love with me and wanted me to marry him. But what we didn't know was that both mother and son were vampires. She passed the curse onto my father on their wedding night, and her son did the same to me one night soon after."

"Did you want it?" Isobel asked.

"No," Lucy shook her head. "He bit me. I struggled. The pain was terrible. Then, he cut himself and I felt the blood trickle into my mouth. Then, he hit me over the head with something heavy. I never have figured out what it was. Next thing I knew, I was a vampire."

"What happened to them?" Isobel asked. "Because Prince Charming obviously isn't here now."

"He and his mother were foolish," Lucy said. "They got themselves caught and killed while Father and I were away." She paused. "But enough about me," she unstacked the journals, putting them side by side on the coffee table. "Back to Selina. Her problem is that she's too good. She's letting her emotions get in the way of her natural way of life, and I'm worried that it's going to get her staked someday."

"I agree completely," Isobel said. "Suppressing your nature is foolish."

"I knew you'd agree," Lucy said. "My plan is to get Selina to see how wonderful it is to just give in to her instincts. Be free. Then, hopefully, she'll never go back."

"But you don't think she'll do it consciously?" Isobel asked.

Lucy shook her head. "I'm sure of it. So we'll have to get her to do it _unconsciously_."

"And how will we do that?"

"Well," Lucy said, "That's what the journals are for. See, Selina's mother was a Lockwood before she married Matthew Warren, and I've heard something very interesting about the Lockwoods."

"What?" Isobel asked.

"That they have lycanthropic tendencies."

"What?" Isobel asked.

"They're a family of werewolves!" Lucy burst out.

"So what, Selina's like a weird vampire-werewolf hybrid?"

"No," Lucy shook her head. "She's just a vampire, but what do you think she does when the moon comes out?"

"How do we know that they're werewolves for sure?" Isobel asked. "It could just be a rumor."

Lucy grabbed the first of Amelia's childhood journals and opened it to an entry dated November 11, 1835:

"_Dear Diary,_

_A tragedy has struck the family. My brother Jacob has been killed. He was out last night when the moon was full and was finally caught. Father said there was a mob, and they all descended on Jacob, carrying guns loaded with silver bullets and emptied them on his body, one by one. He was transformed by that point, so Father says that at least when we bury Jacob, he won't have to look into his son's face and think of him as a murderer._

_Now it's just Charlie and me, and Father says he'll be keeping a very close watch over us. And even though Jacob was ten years older than me, he was still only eighteen, and I'll miss him greatly._

_Amelia."_

"So one of Selina's uncles was a werewolf?" Isobel asked.

"Yes," Lucy nodded. "He apparently killed quite a few people and animals before he was struck down."

"But what about Amelia? Did _she _ever kill anyone?"

Isobel shook her head. "No, but it wasn't like she didn't ever have the urge." Lucy grabbed the second of Amelia's childhood journals and turned to an entry dated September 3, 1838.

"_Dear Diary,_

_It's a full moon tonight, and Father has ordered Mama to keep a close eye on me so I don't go outside. They've locked me in my room and Mama's standing watch by the door so I don't get out. The only time she leaves is to bring me food. But I want to go outside. The moon is so pretty. And I feel restless, like I want to run around in a field and not come back until bedtime. And I feel angry. Very, very angry. I picture the girl Daisy Anderson, who teases me about my dresses at school, and I want her to die. I picture her dying. At my hands, her blood all over my face and hands._

_Amelia_

"And it was the same after she and Matthew were married. In his journals, he expresses a lot of concern about it." She grabbed the first of Matthew's journals and opened it.

_December 1, 1845_

"_Amelia's father came to the house today. He said it was a full moon tonight and that I should watch Amelia at all costs. He told me that she might be temperamental and angry this evening, but to just ignore whatever she says and make sure above all, that she doesn't leave the house tonight. I have noticed that she hasn't been her usual cheerful self. This morning, I tried to help her clear the breakfast dishes and she became enraged, destroying my mother's best china tea set. I left her alone after that._

_I'm nervous about tonight, and I only hope that things will be better in the morning_

_Matthew Warren._

"He wrote a very interesting entry the night Selina was born too," Lucy said. She pulled out the last journal and read the entry dated October 31, 1846.

_Amelia finally had the baby this evening, a little girl. It was a full moon, so I was a bit worried, but everything happened without any trouble. Amelia requested that I leave her curtains open so that she could have a look at the moon. I was worried about the effects of the night air, but realizing the alternative if I didn't do what she said, I opened the windows._

"_Her labor was surprisingly easy. She didn't make a sound. She just kept her eyes straight ahead, staring out the window and pushing when the doctor told her to. Her expression never changed. It was as if she was in a trance. But at the baby's first cry, she snapped out of it and came back to herself. She wanted to name the baby Selina. I made no objection, of course, especially since Amelia let me pick her middle names. I chose Amelia, and then Elizabeth, after my mother._

_I'm a father now! I cannot wait to see what the years will bring!_

_Matthew Warren._

"So what does all this have to do with your plan?" Isobel asked.

"Well it's quite simple," Lucy said. "On some night when there's a full moon, we set Selina loose. No doubt she'll kill a few people and enjoy it. She doesn't realize what she does during full moons until the next morning, by which time it will be too late." Lucy paused. "I hope one of the people she runs into is her cousin Tyler. He's a rat. He deserves to die."

"Why?" Isobel asked. "What did he do?"

"Well, he staked Matthew, for one thing," Lucy said. "And he shot me for another."

"All right then," Isobel said, nodding. "It does sound like he deserves to die. But what do you need me for?"

"Well," Lucy said, "Selina is engaged to a man by the name of Damon Salvatore. I believe the two of you were involved once."

"Of course," Isobel said. "He was the one who turned me."

"Good," Lucy said. "You distract Damon so he can't stop me from setting Selina loose. Undoubtedly he knows about Selina's issue and would interfere. Do whatever you have to, but don't let him out of your sight. You think you can do that?"

"Yes," Isobel nodded. "I can."


	21. Cat Fight

A week later, Selina was once again waking up in her bed at the boardinghouse. She, Elena, Damon and Stefan had talked it over and decided that since Jeremy wasn't the main object of Lucy's wrath, it would be safe for Selina to move out of the house permanently and only stop by to check on him during the day if Elena thought it was necessary.

Selina sat up, looked at the clock on the bedside table, and groaned. "Damon," she muttered sleepily, nudging his prone form beside her. "It's one in the afternoon. We should probably get up now."

His face was against the pillow and he turned it slightly, opening one eye. "Do we have to?" he asked.

"Yes," Selina nodded vigorously. "I need to run over to Elena's house to check on Jeremy and other things of that nature. Besides, we don't want to be lazy slugabeds all the time, do we?"

He brought himself up, leaning on one elbow. "Maybe," he said. "And I don't see what all the rush is. After all, Elena's _here_." He nodded toward the doorway to indicate that Elena was undoubtedly still in Stefan's room where she'd once again spent the night. "If she's not worried, I don't see why you should be."

Selina ignored him and got out of bed, beginning to dress. "Lucy's been quiet for the last week," she said. "Maybe that means that she's calmed down."

"Now you're being naïve," Damon replied dryly, getting out of bed and watching her closely as he dressed himself. "She's probably just biding her time and not doing anything to throw us off."

"I don't like to think of myself as naïve," Selina replied as she pulled a shirt over her head. "Just optimistic."

At that, Damon burst out laughing. "Don't bet on it," he told her when he finally managed to get his breath back. "I want you to be on your guard all the time, even when you think there's no reason to be."

"All right," Selina replied, sighing. "I'll watch out for myself."

"Good," Damon replied. "Now I have to go out and about. It should take about an hour and a half, and then I'm coming straight back."

"All right," Selina nodded. Just as he was about to head out the door, she stopped him. "Wait a minute," she said.

"What?" Damon replied, turning to face her.

"Well," Selina told him, "I've been thinking about the dress I'm going to wear when we get married." She paused. "We _are_ still getting married, aren't we?" she asked.

"Of course," Damon nodded. "Once we vanquish Lucy. No sense in doing it now."

"Anyway," Selina said. "I've been looking through my closet and I've narrowed it down to two; I want your opinion about which one, because I really can't decide."

"All right," he said, "lay it on me."

"Okay." Selina went in to her closet and came out a few minutes later, wearing the first dress: a long, ornate red number with a flowing train and a tulle overskirt. "Here's the first one." She twirled around a few times, then looked at him. "I don't want you to say anything until you've seen both of them." He nodded and then she headed back in the closet and put on the second dress. This one was more modern in design, a simple, short halter dress in different shades of blue. "So," she said as she faced him. "Which one do you think?"

He looked at her for a moment before speaking. "Do you realize that those dresses are the same colors as the ones you wore the night we got engaged and the night you changed me?"

Selina looked down at the dress she wore and then back up at him. "No, I didn't. But now that you mention it, you're right."

"So, the question here is," Damon said, "when we get married, do we want to make it the wedding we should have had a hundred and forty-five years ago, in which case you'd wear the red, or do we want to move on and just keep going with what we have now, in which case you'd wear the blue." He paused a moment, then strode over to her. "I'd go with the blue. The red is too fancy for a Vegas wedding chapel, plus, the blue dress brings out the blue in your eyes." He paused and put his arms around her. "Has anyone told you that you have the most beautiful blue eyes?"

Selina felt her eyes began to mist over as she looked back up at him. "You sounded like my father just now," she said.

He pulled away. "I'm sorry," he said.

"Don't be," Selina shook her head and dabbed at her eyes. "It was nice. Besides," she said, smiling, "one could also say the same about you."

He smiled. "If you don't need me for anything else," he said, "I think I'll be on my way."

"All right," Selina told him. "Thanks for your help. And take care of yourself out there."

He nodded and left her.

She quickly changed her clothes and then went to knock on Stefan's door. "Are you two decent?" she called. There was no answer, but there were also no sounds of unbridled passion, so she took her chances and opened the door. To her surprise, there was no one in the room. She walked inside and over to the neatly made bed, where a note on white paper rested incongruously on Stefan's dark sheets.

_Selina,_

_We headed out earlier this morning. We tried to wake you and Damon, but you must have been sleeping too soundly to hear us. You can come by the house today to check on Jeremy if you want, but I think it won't be necessary, since Lucy's been so quiet recently. But if you feel the need to go and see him, I won't stop you because you know what's best. Maybe we can all get together later in the day._

_Elena_

Selina read the note, folded it over, and then stuck it in the pocket of her jeans. Then, she went into the living room and turned on the television. Halfway through her soap, the doorbell rang. _That's strange,_ Selina thought to herself as she got up to answer the door. _No one usually comes to visit here except Elena and she has a key. I wonder who that could be._

She opened the door. The woman who stood on the other side looked familiar, although Selina was sure she'd never seen her before in her life. "Hello," Selina said after a moment. "Can I help you?"

"Yes," the woman replied. "My name is Isobel Flemming. I'm looking for Damon Salvatore. Is he here?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "He's stepped out for a moment, but he should be back soon. Do you want to come inside?"

"Thank you," Isobel replied, stepping into the house. She and Selina took seats in the living room and Selina snapped off the television, plunging the room into awkward silence.

"So," Selina said finally. "You're Isobel."

"I am," Isobel nodded. "And who're you? Some girl he turned and is keeping around?"

Selina scoffed. "If I was, we'd have something in common, wouldn't we? Or did he just dump you afterwards?"

"I asked him to turn me," Isobel replied. "Things have been good since then. Not to say they weren't while we were together. He's _really _good in bed." Isobel paused. "So who are you exactly?"

"I'm Selina, Damon's fiancée." Selina showed Isobel her ring.

"Wow," Isobel said as she looked at it. "That's strange."

"What?" Selina asked.

"Well, no offense to you, or anything, but it's weird to think of Damon being tied down to anyone. He's just not the type." She paused, and her eyes lit up with recognition. She snapped her fingers and cried "my God! You're Selina? Damon talked about you. He said you cheated on him with the town doctor."

"None of that matters anymore," Selina replied quietly. "It was all just a bunch of lies my sister thought up to keep us apart."

"It's no wonder Katherine was able to lure Damon away. You were just a little twit when you were alive, weren't you?"

Selina breathed in sharply and got up next to Isobel so that they were practically nose to nose. "Listen kid," she whispered. "You don't talk to me that way."

"Who're you calling a kid?" Isobel asked, standing up.

"I was merely referring to the relatively short time you've been a vampire," Selina said easily. "Biologically you weren't a kid when you were turned. How old are you anyway? Forty?"

"Thirty-two," Isobel said through her teeth.

"Thirty-two, and yet I see a few wrinkles," Selina replied, peering up at her. "It must suck to have to live with those for all eternity. And by the way, if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have had Damon around to turn you at all. I was the one who turned him. I guess for all Katherine's evil plotting she's not a complete success, is she?"

Isobel was looking as if she wanted to hit the other girl, but quite suddenly, her facial muscles relaxed.

"I didn't just come here to see Damon," she said easily. "A friend called me up because she wants help with a project she's doing. So I'll be here for awhile. I'll look Damon up later. It was nice talking with you."

As she got up to leave, Selina replied, "look: I know you're working for Katherine. I realize that now. So you can tell that bitch next time you see her that I'm ready for her and she can stop by anytime she wants."

"All right, I will," Isobel replied with her hand on the doorknob. "I'm sure she'll be glad to get the message. And now I have a request for you: next time you see Elena Gilbert, and I know you know who that is, tell her her biological mother wants to see her."

Damon returned to the house an hour later to find Selina looking downcast. "What's the matter with you?" he asked. "Did something bad happen?"

Selina looked up at him. "Remember that girl you turned, Isobel? She stopped by today. She wants to see you. I think she and Lucy are working together, so if when you meet you can get something about their plan out of her that would be great. And one other thing: she says she's Elena's biological mother. Do you think Elena knows?"


	22. Running Free

Damon shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe she does."

"But if she doesn't," Selina countered, "maybe we should break it to her gently. Because I'm very sure her mother is working with Lucy and part of her plan to use me to take over the town."

"What makes you think that?" Damon asked.

"She told me that she was helping a friend with a project and was going to be here awhile," Selina said. "Who else could she mean?"

"Well," Damon replied, "she and Alaric Saltzman were married awhile back. Maybe she came to patch things up with him."

"I don't think so," Selina said. "She didn't seem like that was what she was here to do. And she had the nerve to suggest that I was just some bimbo you turned and was keeping around for entertainment."

"I _was _like that for awhile, especially when she knew me," Damon reminded her. "So do you think we should let Elena in on this, or not?"

"I think we should," Selina replied, "you know, just in case." She pulled the note that Elena had left her that morning out of her pocket. "Elena and Stefan left early this morning before you and I were awake and she left me this note, which suggests the two of us meet them for a chat later today. I think we should just casually mention it to her then."

"Does the note mention when the two of them are going to be back?" Damon asked.

"No," Selina squinted at the leaf of paper again and shook her head. "It just says they went out this morning and are planning to come back later and meet us."

Just then, the honk of a car horn sounded, and Selina looked up from the sheet of paper to see Stefan maneuvering up the drive with Elena beside him in the passenger's seat. "So," Elena said, grinning as the car stopped and the two of them got out. "I see the two of you are finally awake. Anything interesting happen while we were gone?"

Selina and Damon looked at one another uncertainly for a moment, then turned back to Elena. "There was one thing that happened," Selina said carefully, "but it's a really long and difficult thing to talk about here and now. Let's get some coffee and I'll tell you then."

"So what's the big thing?" Elena asked. "Well, actually, before you tell me, I have something that I want to tell you. Interestingly enough, Alaric stopped me after class a few days ago and told me that Jenna told him about how I was adopted and that my birth mother's name was Isobel. It turns out that that was his wife's name too, and it we're pretty certain that his wife and my birth mother are the same person. He showed me a picture of her and we look similar." She paused and smiled. "Isn't that the weirdest thing?"

"Not really," Selina replied through her teeth.

"Did you have something weirder to say?" Elena asked.

"As a matter of fact, yes." Selina replied, taking a sip of her coffee. "How would you feel about meeting Isobel face-to-face?"

Elena frowned. "But how can I do that? Alaric told me that his wife disappeared awhile ago, and that he assumed she was dead."

"Well," Selina said, clearing her throat, "in the oddest of coincidences, it turns out she's not dead after all. And just when we were talking about mothers that people thought were dead and then reappeared quite suddenly—"

"I thought you thought that there was no way your mother could have survived what she went through." Elena pointed out.

"And I still think that," Selina countered. "I just think it's a weird coincidence that both our mothers went through the same process of people thinking they were gone forever and then suddenly reappearing when no one expected it. Well, except that in your case, your mother is alive and my mother is just a crumbly skeleton full of gaping holes from gunshots and who knows what else?"

"Can we talk about something else?" Elena asked.

"All right," Selina said. "I suppose you want to know how I know that your mother is still alive?"

"Yes," Elena nodded.

"She stopped by the house today, looking for you." Selina replied. "We had a colorful exchange of ideas, and then I promised her that the next time I saw you, I would tell you that she wanted to know where you were so that the two of you could have a meeting."

"So she came here just to see me?" Elena asked.

"Do you want the honest truth?" Selina asked.

"Don't tell her the honest truth!" Damon interrupted quickly.

"Why not?" Selina said. "She's going to find out sooner or later that Isobel is working for Lucy, so we might as well tell her now."

"Oh, right." Damon said. "It's good that she knows about Lucy and Isobel. Well, actually we don't know for certain that Lucy and Isobel are plotting together. That's just an idea that Selina has in her head."

"_My mother is working with Lucy?"_ Elena asked, horrified.

"She told me that she'd come to Mystic Falls to see you and to help a friend with a project she was working on. She seemed like the type Lucy would enjoy immensely."

"Oh, God," Elena muttered under her breath.

"So," Selina said, "When should I tell her you want to meet with her?"

"I _don't_ want to meet with her, if she's in league with Lucy," Elena said.

"I really think you should," Selina advised. "It probably'll be nothing bad at all. You might even find out some stuff that's useful."

"You think maybe she'll tell me what Lucy's up to?" Elena asked.

"Maybe," Selina said. "But you won't know if you don't meet with her, so what time can I tell her to expect you?"

"I'm free all day," Elena said after a moment.

* * *

After they were done with their coffees, they headed back to the boardinghouse and Damon gave Selina his car so that she could drive to Lucy's and tell Isobel that Elena would only be too happy to meet with her. When Selina arrived at the house, she parked in the street and approached the front door with caution. She rang the bell and waited for someone to come and let her in.

"Oh, it's you," said a voice when the door finally opened. "What do you want?"

"Well, Isobel," Selina said, "I've spoken with Elena and she says she'd only be too happy to meet with you, and that she's free any time you want to talk."

"Why didn't she come and tell me that herself?" Isobel asked.

Selina shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe it's because you're so new to her and she needed to mentally prepare what she was going to say. I know that if I was suddenly going to see my mother, I would need time to prepare a speech. I haven't seen her for 145 years."

"Isobel, who is it?" Lucy's voice called. "Why are you standing in the doorway like that?"

"It's Selina," Isobel called back. "She came to tell me that Elena wants to meet with me. Do you want me to invite her in?"

"Of course I do," Lucy replied, gently elbowing Isobel out of the way so that she and Selina were face to face. "Sorry you had to be standing out here so long, Selina. Do you want to come inside?"

"All right, thank you." Selina proceeded cautiously into the house, thinking about what she'd say when it was time for her to make a quick exit. Once she was sitting in one of the overstuffed chairs in the parlor, however, she began to relax. Thinking that that was a bad idea, especially in this house, she pulled herself back into a sitting position and perched on the edge of the couch.

"Are you all right?" Lucy asked.

"Yes," Selina nodded. "I'm fine." Her eyes traveled to the coffee table where the four missing journals lay out in the open. "Are those the journals that needed repairing?" Selina asked. "They look all right now. Would you like me to run them back over to the mayor's for you?"

"No, thanks," Lucy replied quickly after a shared look with Isobel. "I still have a couple of things I need to do with them, but it was so sweet of you to offer."

"You were saying that you'd just seen Elena?" Isobel prompted.

"I was," Selina replied. "I just saw her, and told her that you were here and what you wanted, and she said that she would be more than happy to meet with you and that she was free anytime today. So if you'd like, you can tell me a time and a place and I'll let Elena know. It was weird, but just before I told her about you, she said that she and Mr. Saltzman, our history teacher, had been talking about you."

"Ric's here?" Isobel asked.

"Who's that?" Lucy asked.

"My former husband," Isobel replied.

"For some reason, he misses you horribly and has been looking for you ever since you disappeared," Selina told her.

Isobel took in a sharp breath. "Why can't he understand?" she asked. "Why can't he just let me go? It would be the best thing. I need to move on with my life, he needs to move on with his."

"Is that what you're going to tell Elena when you meet?" Selina asked. "That she should give up the idea of having her biological mother around so that you can move on with your life and think about yourself?"

"No," Isobel scowled and shook her head. "Tell Elena to meet me at the Mystic Grill at four."

"All right, I will," Selina said.

"And make sure she brings Damon along with her."

Selina didn't respond to this second request. She left, shut the door behind her, got in her car, and headed back to the boardinghouse.

"I hope this isn't going to screw up our plans," Lucy told Isobel. "Remember, I need you to be with Damon tonight so I can release Selina and the plan can be set in motion. It's a full moon tonight, remember?"

"I know," Isobel replied testily. "You've told me about a million times. Don't worry about a thing. There will be no distractions from Damon tonight. Things will go as planned."

"Can you meet Isobel at the Mystic Grill in half an hour?" Selina asked Elena as she walked in the front door.

"Sure," Elena said. "But that's in half an hour. I should probably get going now."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Stefan asked.

Elena looked at Selina. "Would that be okay? Or did she want me to come alone?"

"I'd bring him along if I was you," Selina said. "He can hide behind a tall potted plant or something."

"Why?" Elena asked.

"Because," Selina said slowly, "Isobel is a vampire too."

Elena looked at Selina and nodded. Then, she looked at Stefan. "You wanna get going?" she asked.

Stefan nodded. "I'll drive."

They arrived at the Grill with ten minutes to spare. Stefan positioned himself at a table so that he could see the people in the dining area but he couldn't see them. Elena sat at the bar, trying to look nonchalant. After a few minutes, she heard a voice behind her. "Are you Elena Gilbert?"

"Yes…" she said hesitantly, turning. She found herself looking at a woman who she had no doubt was Isobel, but she felt like she needed to be sure. "Are you Isobel?" she blurted out.

"Yes," Isobel nodded. "I don't know if you know this, but I'm your biological mother."

Elena gulped, nodded, and got off the barstool, gesturing at an empty booth nearby. "You want to go and sit?" she asked.

Isobel nodded and they took seats at the booth, sitting on either side of the table. "So you said you _did_ know I was your mother," Isobel said.

Elena nodded. "I heard it from my aunt, and then my history teacher told me about you."

"Ric," Isobel said. "We were married before—" she paused.

"Before you were turned?" Elena supplied the rest, and Isobel looked surprised.

"You know about vampires?" Isobel asked.

Elena nodded. "I do."

"You didn't bring anyone else with you, did you?" Isobel asked hopefully. "Any guys? The vampire who changed me is around here and when that Selina girl came to the house to tell me that you'd agreed to this meeting, I asked her to make sure you brought him along too."

"The guy who changed you knows Selina?" Elena asked curiously.

"Yep," Isobel nodded. "I believe he's engaged to her."

As the color drained from Elena's face, Isobel gazed at her curiously. "What's the matter with you?" she asked.

"You were changed by Damon Salvatore?" Elena asked.

"Yes, I was," Isobel said pleasantly. "I asked him to do it."

"Why?"

"Because I was bored with my life," Isobel explained. "I'd made some bad decisions when I was young and wanted to do something completely different."

"Bad decisions?" Elena repeated. "Like having me?"

"I will admit that getting pregnant when I was fifteen wasn't the best idea I ever had, and your father was a waste of space."

"So I was just a mistake?" Elena said. "And now you're just going to leave and forget about me?"

"That was originally my plan," Isobel agreed. "But now that I've met you, I've decided that we should bond. I'm helping a friend with a project and I want you to do it with us."

"No," Elena said. "I know what you and Lucy are doing and I won't have any part of it."

"You know about Lucy?" Isobel asked.

"Of course," Elena said. "I know she's going to use Selina to destroy this town."

"You're very perceptive," Isobel said. "It's too bad you're not helping me, because then I'd be able to tell you how. But since you've already given me your final answer, I guess you'll just have to see what happens with everybody else." She paused. "And if you don't want to be one of our victims, I suggest you tell Damon to meet me here tonight and then stay out of our way."

* * *

Elena did as Isobel asked, and that night, just before the moon came up, Stefan, Damon, and Elena brought Selina back to Elena's house and planted her in the room she'd used before.

"Now you know the drill, Selina," Damon told her. "You aren't to leave this room tonight, or you could hurt somebody. I'm going to keep the windows locked, and the door locked. No one comes in and you don't go out under any circumstances."

"Okay," Selina nodded, taking a deep breath. A few minutes after they left, there was a knock at Selina's door.

"Sophia?" Jeremy called. "May I come in?"

Before Selina could get up her breath to say no, Jeremy remembered that the door didn't lock from the outside. He opened it slowly and peeked around the edge before stepping in all the way. "What are you doing in here by yourself?" he asked her.

"Nothing, really." Selina answered.

"Well," he said. "Elena and Jenna are both gone, so I have an idea of something we could do. But first, let's open these windows; the moon's beautiful tonight." And quick as a flash, he flung open the curtains and unlocked the windows, giving both of them a good view of the pale, full moon.

After a few seconds, Selina turned to him, a seductive grin on her face. "That's a good idea," she said, approaching him. "You're full of good ideas. Has anyone ever told you that?" She put her hands on the bottom of his shirt and pulled it off with ease. He blinked a couple of times and grinned back at her, putting his hands around her waist and his tongue in her mouth. Easing her over to the bed, he kept his lips on hers as he eased off the rest of his clothes except for his boxers. Instead of tucking themselves in, they stayed on top of the covers. He slowly pulled off her clothes until she was just wearing a lacy white slip. After this had gone on for awhile, she growled and went for his throat. Blood spurted all over the comforter and the pillowcase. At Jeremy's first surprised cry, Selina pulled away, jumped off the bed, then bounded out the open window into the night.

As soon as she was gone, Jeremy managed to get off the bed, but after walking a few steps, movement just became too difficult. He collapsed, aware of nothing until Jenna came in half an hour later, found him, and began screaming.


	23. A Dream Come True

As soon as Selina was clear of the house, she turned around and looked long at the Gilbert house. At the lighted window that was the bedroom she'd been given, which now held Jeremy, unconscious. Then, she ran away. As soon as she was out of sight of the house, she paused for breath and looked down at herself. She'd run away without dressing. She was now just wearing her white slip and no shoes. Her hair was undoubtedly a mess, and there was probably still blood around her mouth.

Taking a deep breath, she thought about what to do now. She needed to get some clothes, and fast, but going back to the house would be too risky. She decided to keep walking until she reached some sort of civilization and things could go on from there.

After trudging for what seemed like miles with only the moon lighting her way, she saw the Grill up ahead, and people milling around the front. It was perfect. She began striding toward them and when a few of the girls saw her, they gave her smirking looks.

"Did you just come back from a job, girlie?" one of them asked. "I bet the guy didn't pay so well if you're not dressed. Or was it so terrible that you just high-tailed it out of there?"

"Excuse me?" Selina asked.

The girl who'd spoken was not much older than Selina herself supposedly was. Her skin looked deathly white in the moonlight. She wore a nose ring, had black hair and dark eyes surrounded by garish purple shadow. She wore a short, black leather miniskirt and a midriff-baring green shirt. "Did you come back from a job?" the girl repeated, blowing cigarette smoke out of her nostrils. She looked Selina over. "I bet you can afford to charge a lot," she mused. "A girl who looks like you can probably get thousands at a time for her services."

Selina smiled wickedly, realizing what they were talking about. "I _do _charge a lot," she said easily. "But unlike you girls out here on the street, I conduct business from the house. And I get a better type of man than one who just gives me five bucks a pop." She looked the girl over. "You only get what you give," she said musingly. "And if this is the look you're going for, it's no wonder your fate is to spend the rest of your life sleeping with bums and eventually succumbing to some fatal sexually transmitted disease."

The girl frowned. "You wanna say that again, huh girly?" and with that, she punched Selina in the eye and the other girls cheered.

As Selina got back up, her legs covered in scratches, she said "I wasn't planning on killing anyone tonight, but you just made a very bad decision."

She then grabbed the girl by the hair and the two of them began to fight, exchanging punches and kicks until blood dripped out from every hole in their faces. Finally, when they were behind a row of bushes, their forms hidden from the other girls, Selina knocked the other girl out and went for her neck. A few minutes later, she was dead. Selina gazed at her for a moment, then up at the full moon which still shone brightly overhead. When she looked back down at the girl's body, she'd made her decision. They were close to the same size, and there was no one watching. Slowly and methodically, she began to undress the girl, putting the clothes she took on her own body, including the girl's bra and panties. She'd been right, they were the same size.

In the pocket of the girl's skirt, she found a wallet, which was full to the brim with cash. Great, she thought to herself. Now I can go get myself cleaned up and get a drink. She stepped around the row of bushes. To her surprise, the girls that had been standing out front only a moment before were gone. Slowly, Selina began to walk toward the Grill.

When she got inside, the bell above ringing as she shut the door behind her, she went toward the counter. "Hey," she said to the boy. "Can I have a Coke, some fries, and a burger?"

"Sure," he said.

Selina grabbed the wallet out and pushed some bills toward him.

He brought her food and she began eating it very quickly, stuffing fry after fry into her mouth until she looked like a chipmunk.

"Slow down there," the guy behind the counter replied, laughing. "You'll choke to death if you keep eating like that."

Selina swallowed and smiled at him. "Sorry about that," she said, smiling at him. "I bet that was really attractive to look at."

"It wasn't so bad," he replied. "I respect a girl with an appetite."

She laughed a little and after taking a drink, took a bite of her burger. As she was swallowing, she heard a voice behind her.

"Well, hello," he said. "I didn't expect to see you out here tonight."

Selina turned. "Hello, Tyler," she replied. "Come sit next to me."

The invitation made him start a little, but he was too smart to look a gift horse in the mouth. He took a seat beside her and looked up at the boy behind the counter. "I'll have what she's having," he said, motioning to Selina.

He nodded, and a few minutes later, Tyler was working on his own burger.

"So," he said between bites, "did you just come out here to eat?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "I'm glad you're here, actually. You're just the person I wanted to see."

"Really?" Tyler asked, hopping off his barstool and pushing it closer to hers. "Why's that?"

"Well," Selina replied after another bite, "you and I are cousins, yet we've never really talked, have we?"

"No," Tyler shook his head. "It's because you hate me."

"I don't hate you," Selina said, smiling and putting a hand on his leg. "I'm sorry if I seemed a little cold before, but I really want to make a fresh start. Would you mind driving me somewhere?"

"Sure," Tyler replied, grinning. "Just where did you have in mind?"

Selina smiled back. "I'll tell you when we get to the car."

A few minutes later, they were running out to Tyler's car. "You brought the roomy one," Selina observed. "That was a good idea." They got into the car, Tyler sitting in the driver's seat and Selina sitting in the passenger seat beside him.

"I like the new look," he observed. "You're usually so, so—" he paused, looking for the right word.

"Classy?" Selina supplied. "Covered up?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "But now—"

"I look like a streetwalker?"

He shook his head. "I wouldn't phrase it quite like that. The point is I think you look good."

"About where I want to go," Selina began as he started the car, "Is there any place where we can go to be alone? Where we won't be interrupted by anyone?"

"Sure," he replied. "There's a restaurant nearby," he said. "It's been closed for years and the parking lot's always empty."

"Sounds good to me," Selina said. They drove to the parking lot in silence, although Tyler took one hand off the steering wheel to put it on top of Selina's. When they reached the parking lot, Tyler put on the brakes and looked at Selina.

"What do you want to do now?" he asked. "Talk?"

"I don't think so," Selina replied. "Open the sunroof." As soon as he had done so, he put his arms around her and began kissing her neck. She pushed him away a little. "Aren't you afraid of me?" she asked. "Aren't you scared I'll hurt you?"

He grinned and shook his head. "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."

Then, she put her hand under his chin and put her mouth over his. This went on for quite some time until Selina felt his hand under her shirt. Then, she bit and took a long, deep gulp. "Not yet," she scolded him as he flopped back against the driver's seat. She'd meant to move to the back where they'd have more room, but that was now unnecessary. "You have to be patient."

He began moaning, and Selina maneuvered him out of the driver's seat and into the back. "My God," she said, rolling her eyes as she sat back in the driver's seat, "Are you going to be like that the whole way?" She started the car again, driving out near the woods.

As soon as she stopped the car, Tyler sat up. "Where are we?" he asked.

"By the woods," Selina told him. "I have a little surprise for you." She got out of the car and slammed the door behind her, waiting for him to follow. As soon as he did, she turned to him. "Just follow my lead, and don't say anything."

The pair walked stealthily into the woods, where they heard the sound of a group of campers, Selina assumed all men. They came upon the camp site and found only one of the men awake. "Excuse me," Selina said to him. "I'm sorry to disturb you so late, but my boyfriend and I are going camping and we need help putting up our tent."

"No problem," the boy said. "Where's your site?" He followed Selina and Tyler to a dense, out of the way part of the forest. "We're going to have it right here," she said. She looked at Tyler. "Would you go get the stuff?" she asked. He nodded and went on his way.

As soon as he was gone, Selina asked the boy, "are you here by yourself tonight?"

He shook his head. "Me and four of my buddies are doing this while we're on a break from college."

Selina nodded. "That's nice."

"You want me to go help your boyfriend find your camping stuff?" he asked.

"Sure," Selina nodded.

As he got up to leave, Selina jumped him. He struggled, but she overpowered him and ripped out his throat, letting the blood run all over his clothes and the ground. Sighing, she took a long slurp.

"Can I come back now?" said a voice. She looked up and saw Tyler. He looked back at her, the expression on his face a mix of horror and fascination. "You want your surprise now?" she asked. She stood up and walked over to him. "Kiss me. You should get a taste."

He did so, and when he pulled away, his mouth was covered in blood.

"Did you like it?" she asked.

He nodded.

She stepped away from the prone form of the camper. "You can finish him off. He said there were others, and I'm going to go check it out. We can't have anyone looking for him, now can we?"

Tyler shook his head and began licking up the blood. As soon as Selina was gone, he looked up from the body, eyes glowing yellow. Once he'd finished, he went in search of Selina. By the time he found her, she'd managed to dispatch two of the other campers.

"There are two more," she told him. "I'll let you have them."

Quickly, he found the other two asleep in their tent.

"It's more fun if they run," Selina whispered, breathing on his neck. "Come on, Tyler. Show me what you can do."

He grabbed a large branch that was on the ground and began hitting the dirt next to the tent with it. A few minutes later, the two other campers emerged, slightly drowsy. With a push from Selina, Tyler ran after them, catching one and biting him to hinder his movements while he ran for the other. As soon as they were both down, Tyler set to work. Once they were of no more use, he stood up. "What do you want to do with the bodies?" he asked. "Should we bury them?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "Don't worry about it. We're in the woods. The scavengers will take care of them for us."

She took his hand. "You did so well tonight that I think I'm going to reward you. Is there anyone at your house?"

"No," Tyler shook his head. "My parents are gone again. Is that where you want to go?"

She nodded. They got into the car, and Tyler drove them back to the mansion. As they got out of the car, Selina looked around. "Where do you suppose we can get the best view of the moon?" she asked.

"The boat house," he said. "There's a whole in the roof that Dad's been meaning to get fixed but has always forgotten."

Selina wrinkled her nose. "The first time we have sex and you want it to be on the cold cement ground of the _boathouse_?"

"There are air mattresses and sleeping bags with the camping stuff," Tyler said. "If we go anywhere else, the atmosphere won't be as good."

Selina sighed. "I suppose that'll do."

Tyler got the air mattress and sleeping bags and laid them out.

Selina looked up at the hole in the roof, realizing Tyler was right. The view was spectacular.

As soon as he finished setting up the sleeping bags, he came up behind her and put his arms around her waist. "Where were we?" he asked.

"Right about here," Selina said, smiling and covering his mouth with hers.

His hands moved under her blouse and soon her shirt was off, as well as the rest of her clothes. It didn't take Tyler much longer to undress, and as the moon watched, he reveled in the fact that he was succeeding where his grandfather Michael had failed.

* * *

Damon arrived at Isobel's house and smiled when she started as she opened the door. "What's the matter?" he asked. "Weren't you expecting me?"

"Well, yeah," she nodded. "I'm just surprised you knew where to find me. I mean, it's not like I gave you my address or anything."

"Please," Damon scoffed and grinned. "This is the most expensive foreclosure in this area. Do you think I've forgotten what I taught you?"

"Have a seat," Isobel said, smiling and motioning to a spot next to her on a black leather sofa. "Can I get you a drink?"

Damon shook his head. "Thanks, but I think I'm all right."

"Are you sure?" Isobel asked. "You seem so tense." She began to rub his shoulders.

"It's nothing really," he said.

"Are you upset because you're the one who turned me and I haven't come to see you before now?" she asked. "I tried to see you the other day, but that girl who says she's your fiancée told me you were out."

"You mean Selina?" Damon asked. "She _is_ my fiancée."

Isobel snuck a glance at the clock. "Not for long," she said quietly.

"What?" Damon asked.

"I said, not for long. Do you know where she is right now? She could be cheating on you this very minute."

"No," Damon shook his head and maneuvered out of Isobel's grip. "She wouldn't do that to me. We've been through too much."

"Oh, please," Isobel said. "On a night like this with her…peculiarities? I wouldn't be surprised if she's out there getting banged right now. Cut your losses. You wanna get her back? The bed's ready and waiting." She began planting small kisses on his neck and easing off his shirt. He turned around to tell her to stop, but she captured his mouth with hers and suddenly, they were on the bed. Damon wanted to pull away, but realized that he couldn't. Finally, he just gave up. He'd explain to Selina in the morning.

Once they were done, Isobel looked at him. "I have something to tell you," she told him. "Lucy's probably going to kill me because I wasn't supposed to tell anyone, but I figure it's too late for interference now: Selina's out and about. Lucy let her out of her room. She's concerned that Selina's gotten too soft, and thought that letting her out so she could revel in her true nature would help Selina in the event that your fiancée gets attacked by vengeful townsfolk who are intent on staking her. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if there are a bunch of death reports on the news tomorrow, all attributed to your angelic, perfect fiancée."


	24. Wrong or Right

Slowly Selina opened her eyes and frowned. Something was wrong. She ran her hands over the fabric of the inside of the sleeping bag and then looked at the bits of red and green fuzz. She'd never seen anything like this before, at least not at the boarding house. She wasn't even certain that Damon and/or Stefan owned anything remotely similar.

Beside her, she heard a groan and looked down, realizing that there was a hand on her breast. She hadn't been aware at first of there being anyone next to her, but it made sense. She pulled the bag off her body, then put it back on quickly when she realized that she was naked. She sat up slowly and looked around her. Eventually, she had to conclude that she had no idea where she was. Had Damon spirited her away for a surprise romantic rendezvous in the middle of the night? Maybe. But she was sure she would have remembered that, especially if they had had sex the previous evening. She slowly lowered herself back onto her side to think what to do.

Suddenly, the hand on her body moved slowly down from her breast and onto her belly. She began to feel kisses being softly and slowly showered on the back of her neck. Smiling a little, she turned around to kiss Damon back, and screamed. It wasn't Damon who was beside her. It was Tyler.

"Oh my God!" she yelled, trying to cover herself up as much as possible, pushing his hand away.

At her cry, he opened his eyes. "Good morning, beautiful," he said, smilling.

"Don't start," she said, beginning to shiver. "Don't you even start with that. Why the hell am I here?"

He inched closer to her. "I remember you telling me a little while back that you'd have to be out of your mind for us to have sex," he said. "Well, last night was a full moon and…"

Selina groaned. "So you decided to take advantage of the situation, knowing that I would be vulnerable and wouldn't do anything to stop you."

Tyler snorted. "Vulnerable? Do you have any idea what you're like when the moon is out? Vulnerable isn't the word that comes to mind. In fact, this whole thing," he gestured between the two of them. "This was your idea."

Selina shook her head. "I couldn't. I wouldn't. I'm _engaged_ for God's sake!"

"So?" Tyler said, shrugging and moving his hands over her body again. "That doesn't mean you can't have a little fun."

"Watch your hands," she growled, moving them off and glaring at him.

He put them up in a gesture of surrender. "Sorry. I forgot there was still a nineteenth-century lady in there somewhere."

Selina nodded. "You're damn right there is. I'm going to go now, if that's all right with you." She moved to get up.

"Go ahead," Tyler said, nodding. "But it's going to be a real treat for me, watching you walk away. Seeing as you currently aren't wearing anything."

"All right," Selina said, sighing. "Give me my clothes and I'll be on my way."

Nodding obligingly, Tyler got up and grabbed her pile of clothes from the corner of the boathouse. He was clad only in his boxers. "Here," he said, handing them to her.

Selina looked at what he was offering and frowned. "Those aren't my clothes. I would never dress like that. Unless," she looked up at him and frowned. "Unless you bought them for me to wear in order to fulfill some sick fantasy of yours."

Tyler shook his head. "This, honestly, is what you were wearing when I found you at the Grill last night. I wouldn't want you to be anything other than you are," he said seriously.

Saying nothing, Selina snatched the clothes out of his grasp and quickly put them on without regard to modesty. She figured that since he'd already seen her naked, it wouldn't matter if she tried to cover up anymore.

"What's going on with you?" Tyler asked. "You're acting like you don't remember anything from last night."

"I don't," Selina replied. "At least not right now, although I have no doubt it will come back to me in the next couple of hours. It always does." She paused. "Since you seem to remember, tell me what happened. How did we end up like this?"

"Well," Tyler said, "I can't tell you everything because I wasn't there the whole time, but I'll tell you what I know: I went out last night for a snack. I ended up at the Grill. You were there, eating a burger and fries, and acting oddly. When you saw me, you acted happy, not angry or resistant like normal. You asked me to take you somewhere where we could be alone. I drove out to the parking lot of the abandoned restaurant, you know? And then, we started making out. Then, you bit me."

"Probably because you were trying to pull something," Selina said. "Were your hands somewhere they shouldn't have been at the time?"

"I guess," he admitted. "But after you had your fill, you moved me to the back seat and drove off by the woods. By the time you stopped the car, I'd recovered enough to sit up. As soon as you noticed, you told me that you had a surprise for me. We went deep into the woods, where we ran into a group of campers. You attacked the first one, and then, while he was down, told me that I could finish him off while you dealt with the others."

"I didn't," Selina said, shocked.

Tyler nodded. "Yes you did. And since it was a full moon, you know what that means, don't you?"

Selina nodded, her heart sinking. "You're the first Lockwood since Uncle Jacob to—"

"To benefit from the family legacy," Tyler finished, grinning. "And it's all thanks to you. After that, you told me you wanted to reward me for all my hard work. So we came back here and you rewarded me all night."

"My God," Selina said faintly, standing up. "I think I feel ill." She began to pace around the boathouse. "How come you remember all this and I don't?" she asked him.

He shrugged. "I have no idea. Maybe it's because you haven't fully embraced your heritage and I have."

"How can I fully embrace it?" she asked. "There would be a bit of a conflict, I think." She paused. "How come your parents let you out last night? Aren't they afraid you're going to hurt someone? Mama wrote how after Uncle Jacob died, their parents kept her and Uncle Charlie in at all times to prevent further catastrophe."

"Please, Selina." Tyler smirked. "I'm a lot more careful then Uncle Jacob ever was. I'm not going to get caught."

Selina cleared her throat. I'm going to be on my way now," she said. "And what happened here last night? It was a fluke. It won't ever, _ever_ happen again."

"I don't know," Tyler replied easily. "You seemed to like it. A lot. And so did I, come to think of it."

"Are you trying to suggest that there's something between us?" she asked. "Even though you're my cousin and thus it's unnatural?"

Tyler shrugged. "I don't know. You wanna try it again, just to see? It's not like you have to be anywhere else today."

"Fine," Selina replied. "And this will prove to you once and for all that any connection we have is just in your head."

He put his hands around her waist and put his mouth on hers. The kiss lengthened and his hands began to move upward. Her hands, which had been on his neck, began to move downward, until they reached the bottom of his shirt, which she began to pull off. With a quick jerk of his body, both of them fell back onto the air mattress. Selina wiggled out of her panties and the two of them continued with such force that by the time they were done, they were both panting heavily, and Selina was clutching Tyler and shaking.

"What was that?" Selina asked, when she could finally get a breath.

"I don't know," Tyler replied. "But whatever it was—"

"I think I liked it," Selina said in surprise.

"You should probably get going," Tyler said, letting her go. "I don't know what time it is, but I bet your fiancé is looking for you."

"All right," Selina said, getting up and putting her panties back on. "Goodbye."

"Bye, Selina," Tyler replied. "Have a good day."

Selina left the boat house and walked back to the boardinghouse, thinking up excuses along the way to account for where she'd been all last night. "Hello?" she called. "Is anyone home?"

"According to the news, you had quite the night last night, didn't you?" Stefan asked as he approached her. "What in the world possessed you to leave your room?"

"It wasn't my fault," Selina replied. "Jeremy came in right after you guys left and—" she gasped. "Oh my God! Jeremy! Is he okay? I didn't mean to bite him, I swear, it's just that he came in and opened the windows and—"

"Slow down," Stefan said, helping her to the couch. "They got him to the hospital just in time. Elena called and said he lost a lot of blood, but they gave him a transfusion and he should be all right in a couple of days."

"Thank God," Selina said, breathing a sigh of relief.

"There you are!" Damon exclaimed. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," Selina said, nodding.

"Tell us exactly what happened last night," Stefan said. "Because obviously, something did. It's all over the news."

"Well," Selina began, "after you guys left, I made plans for a long night in my room, right? Then there was this knock at the door, and it was Jeremy. He said that he'd noticed I looked a little down and asked if there was anything he could do to cheer me up. Then, he opened the windows. After that, I attacked him. And the second I heard him scream, I went out the window. I walked to the Grill where I got into a fight with some of the prostitutes that hang around. One of them decided to start getting physical, so I dragged her behind some bushes and killed her.

"Then, I went into the Grill and ordered some food. A little while later, Tyler showed up and we went to the abandoned parking lot behind that restaurant that got closed down awhile back and I fed off him. Then, with him still in the car, I drove near the woods, where I ran into some campers and killed them. By the time I got back from doing that, Tyler was better and he suggested I spend the night at his house because his parents weren't home. I did, and that's why I didn't come back last night."

"And that's _exactly_ what happened?" Stefan asked.

"Yep," Selina nodded.

Damon eyed her keenly. "Sweetheart," he said. "Do you want to come into our room and talk?"

"Sure," Selina replied, nodding and following him.

They went into their room, and as soon as the door was closed, Damon turned to her. "So, to translate," he began. "What really happened last night was that after we left, Jeremy came to your room because he wanted to sleep with you. You agreed and at the height of passion, you bit him, and when you heard him scream, you left Elena's house through the open window." He paused. "Does that mean that for a period of time last night, you were roaming around Mystic Falls completely naked?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "I was wearing my slip."

"And while I work on getting _that_ image out of my head, although I don't really want to because it's really great, allow me to continue: so you left Elena's house and were wandering around Mystic Falls in nothing but your slip when you came upon the Grill and got into a fight with one of the prostitutes who solicit near there. Can I assume they thought you were one of them?"

Selina nodded. "Yes they did."

"Anyway," Damon continued, "you got into a fight with this prostitute, and eventually killed her and took her clothes."

"And her wallet," Selina added.

Damon's eyes widened for a fraction of a second before he continued. "You dressed in the prostitute's clothes and went into the Grill, where you met up with Tyler. Still hungry, you persuade him to take you to some desolate place where you wouldn't be disturbed. You fed off him, and then you drove to the woods and kill the five campers. Then, you spent the night at Tyler's house. Is that more accurate?" he asked.

"Yes," Selina nodded. "It's more accurate, but not entirely. You forgot the part where Tyler helped me kill the five campers. He dispatched two of them and I let him have the blood of the first."

Damon put his hands on her shoulders. "You let Tyler have blood? I bet it made him sick."

"No," Selina shook her head. "Actually, it made him be the first Lockwood male to embrace the family legacy since Mama's brother Jacob."

"What family legacy?" Damon asked.

"Tyler's a werewolf now," Selina confessed. "That's what all Lockwoods have the potential to be, although it's only males who fulfill it. And after all the campers died, we went back to his place because his parents were gone and had sex in the boathouse. That's the whole truth about last night."

"You spent last night having sex with Tyler," Damon said flatly.

"Yeah," Selina replied. "How was your date with Isobel?"

"Just wonderful," Damon told her. "After _we_ had sex, she told me about Lucy's plan."

"What was it?" Selina asked.

"Well, apparently, she wanted you to get in touch with your vampire side more in case the townspeople decide to attack you at some point. She thinks you've gone too soft."

"So she set me loose on an innocent town."

"Yep," Damon said. "She was the one who was supposed to come and let you out."

Selina smiled a little. "I wonder how she felt when she came and found I was already gone?"

* * *

"It was the weirdest thing," Lucy told Isobel. "I came to let her out, and she was already gone. I wondered for a minute how in the world Selina could have gotten out, because I don't doubt they locked her in pretty tightly. Then, I saw all these paramedics in the room, surrounding Jeremy Gilbert's body. He looked dead. And the funny thing was, he was wearing his boxer shorts, and there was blood all over the bed sheets."

"Do you think he was victim number one?" Isobel asked.

"I don't doubt it," Lucy said. "But Selina didn't kill him. He's at the hospital now and they're whipping him back into shape."

"Sorry your plan didn't go as you hoped," Isobel told her.

"Oh, it did," Lucy replied, turning on the local news, where the reporters were still talking about the prostitute and the campers. "I'm just a little disappointed that I wasn't the one who let Selina out of her house." She paused. "Jeremy Gilbert's in the hospital now. I think it might be neighborly of me to go and see how he is." She left Isobel and headed to her room, opening her closet which contained a large sea trunk. She opened it and grabbed the outfit on top, a uniform not unlike the ones that were seen in hospitals today. She'd been a nurse once. It didn't hurt to keep up with the times. She put the uniform on, and left the house for the hospital.

* * *

Elena parked her car in the visitor's parking lot of the hospital and got out of it slowly. Jenna had called her and told her that Jeremy was improving and that she should come and see him as soon as possible. She headed inside and asked the woman at the reception desk what room he was staying in. She found it quickly, walking slowly over to the bed and taking Jeremy's hand. "Are you feeling better, Jer?" she asked. "Jenna said you were."

"Yes," he said weakly.

A few minutes later, a nurse entered the room. "Hello, Elena," said.

"Lucy?" Elena said with surprise. "I didn't know you worked here."

"I do," Lucy nodded. "It's much easier than working on battlefields, let me tell you." She walked over to Jeremy and began checking his vitals. "Everything seems in order here," she said. "But I have a question for you, Jeremy. Can you tell me who did this to you? Do you feel ready to talk about it?"

"It was Elena's friend, Sophia," he said, after a moment. "I came in to tell her goodnight and she attacked me."

"Attacked you?" Lucy said.

"Yeah," Jeremy nodded. "She's a vampire, you know. She used her powers on me to get me to have sex with her, and then she bit me and left me for dead."

"Wow," Lucy said, doing her best to keep a straight face. "And is this the first time Sophia's done this?" she asked.

"No," Jeremy shook his head. "It's happened every so often since she moved in with us awhile back. This is the first time she's bitten me afterward, though."

"So ever since Sophia moved in with you, she's been influencing you to sleep with her?" Lucy said carefully.

"Yep," Jeremy replied.

"Well," Lucy stood up. "I'll make sure that this doesn't happen to anyone else. After my shift is over, I'll go tell the sheriff about Sophia and they'll get her out of the way. You'll be safe soon, Jeremy." With a brief nod to Elena, she left the room.

As soon as she was out of Jeremy's room, she left the hospital and drove straight to the police station, requesting a meeting with the sheriff.

"Yes?" Sheriff Forbes asked as soon as she entered the room.

"I know the identity of the vampire who attacked Jeremy Gilbert as well as the prostitute and the five campers," she said.

"Who was it?" the sheriff asked.

"Her name is Selina Warren," Lucy said. "She's staying at the Salvatore boardinghouse. I suggest you go get her before she can harm anyone else."


	25. The Captive

The sheriff looked at Lucy curiously. "Are you certain her name is Selina Warren? It can't be. Selina Warren was born and died years ago. She's the main character in that "Lady in Red" story, which says that—"

"She eloped with Roger Stensrund, left town, and no one ever heard from her again. I know that story," Lucy said patiently. "But I promise you that it _is _her."

The sheriff sighed. "Are you absolutely certain? I mean, have you seen her bite anyone, or have any other kind of concrete evidence to support your accusation?"

"As a matter of fact, I do," said Lucy, standing up. "I was assigned to watch over Jeremy Gilbert after his accident and today, he blurted out the whole thing."

"Really?" Sheriff Forbes asked. "Do you suppose he's well enough to repeat to me what he told you?"

"I guess," Lucy replied. "Do you want to come to the hospital with me and get a statement?"

Sheriff Forbes nodded. "I think that might be a good idea." She stood up from her desk and called to one of her deputies to tell them she was going out and would be back in a little bit.

Lucy followed her out to her police car and the two of them made their way to the hospital in no time flat because the Sheriff had the siren on. Once inside the hospital, Lucy led Sheriff Forbes to Jeremy's room.

"What's going on here?" Elena asked as they entered.

"I need to get a statement from your brother about his attack," the sheriff told her. "It shouldn't take very long."

Elena opened her mouth to speak, but realized that it would be pointless. Instead, she just stood there watching.

"Jeremy," Lucy whispered, "how are you feeling?"

"Not the best," he said, "but not terrible. What's going on?"

"Well," Lucy explained, "Sheriff Forbes wants you to tell her what you told me about Sophia so that she and her deputies can take Sophia away."

"Sophia?" the sheriff as she got out her notepad.

"It's the alias Selina's been using while she's been traipsing around town trying to act like a normal person." Lucy supplied.

"Oh," the sheriff nodded. "I have to admit that that's very clever of her." She paused as Jeremy slowly sat up with Elena supporting his back. "Now tell me Jeremy, what happened to you?"

"Well," Jeremy began again, "Sophia came to our house to stay a couple of weeks ago. She was Elena's friend from school and said that her house was being checked for termites or something so she couldn't stay there. We took her in and a couple of nights later, I went to her room to tell her goodnight and she just started kissing me. She looked me deep in the eyes and before I knew it, we were having sex."

"So she raped you?" the sheriff asked.

"No," Jeremy shook his head. "I wanted it to happen. Well, not originally, since I only came into her room to tell her goodnight. She must have been using her powers on me or something."

"Okay," the sheriff said. "Now, can I assume this happened other times as well?"

"Yes," Jeremy nodded. "Several other times, all done with Sophia's own mental influence. I learned my lesson after the first time and never went into her room of my own accord again."

"That's very wise," Sheriff Forbes replied, scribbling on her pad. "What happened just prior to this most recent attack?"

"Well," Jeremy continued, "Elena and Jenna had just left the house when all of a sudden, I felt myself start to be compelled again. I tried to resist, really I did, but there wasn't much I could do. I went to her room and she was sitting in a chair by the window. She told me to come in the room and then asked me to open the windows. I did, and then she got my clothes off and got me onto her bed. I wasn't really aware of anything until I felt the pain. I tried to sit up, but there was blood everywhere: on my body, on the sheets, on the floor. Before I could say anything, she bounded out the open window. I tried to get out of bed to go close the windows, but I was so weak from her feeding on me that I just passed out and that's how Jenna found me when she got back to the house."

The sheriff looked over at Elena. "Were you there at that point? Can you confirm his story?"

"Yes," Elena nodded. "I got back home a little after Jenna did. When I entered the house, I heard her screaming and ran to Jeremy's room to see what was wrong and I found her on her knees on the floor of his room, leaning over his prone body that was on the floor. He was covered in blood, and so still I initially thought he was dead. Once Jenna saw me, she told me to watch him and she ran to call 911."

"All right." Sheriff Forbes made some more notes, then looked back up at Elena. "Was Selina Warren in your house that night?"

"Yes," Elena nodded. "Earlier in the evening. She hadn't been feeling well, so Damon asked if we would keep her with us for the night because he had to go out."

"Damon Salvatore?" the Sheriff asked.

"Yes," Elena nodded. "He and Selina are engaged."

"Well that would explain why he came with her when we called to see if she would come and identify Amelia Warren's body." The sheriff laughed bitterly. "If vampires had any sympathy to appeal to, I'd almost feel sorry for Selina. It can't be easy coming to identify your mother's body, even if your mother's been dead for over a hundred years." She paused, and then looked up from her notes and back at Elena. "You say that Damon asked you to watch over Selina because she wasn't feeling well. But you and I both know that vampires can't get sick. Why did Damon _really _want Selina at your house?" she asked. "Because Selina asked him to bring her so she could get at your brother?"

Elena shook her head. "I don't know," she remarked. "I really couldn't tell you anything else then what Damon told me."

"Is Selina back at the house now?" the sheriff asked Elena.

"Not at our house," Elena shook her head. "I didn't see her this morning, so I assume she went back home with Damon."

"All right," the sheriff nodded and closed her notepad. "Thank you for your assistance." She left the room and got back into her car and drove to the police station. "Boys," she called to her deputies, "we have a new job on our hands which will be more important then any of the others. Get your things ready because tonight, we're going to go catch a vampire!"

* * *

"You'll never guess what I just did," Lucy said to Isobel as she came down the stairs after changing out of her nurse's uniform.

"Found a way to end world hunger?" Isobel guessed.

"No," Lucy said seriously, ignoring Isobel's sarcasm. "I just went to the police station and told Sheriff Forbes about Selina murdering all those people. Well, I didn't actually have evidence for the prostitute and the campers, but she believed me anyway."

"So now what?" Isobel asked.

"Well, If Sheriff Forbes thinks the way I think she does, tonight, she and her deputies are going to go the boardinghouse and bring Selina in."

"Are you serious?" Isobel asked. "You ratted Selina out to the sheriff? What happened to thinking of her as the daughter you never had and swearing you would never hurt her?"

"It's not going to hurt her at all," Lucy replied, walking to the kitchen. "Selina will be able to fight back when the sheriff and her men come, thus the only ones who will be harmed will be them. Call it a little on the job training." She grinned.

"You are so wicked," Isobel said.

"Oh, I know." Lucy replied.

* * *

"Elena's back from the hospital," Stefan announced as he hung up the phone an hour later.

"That's good," Selina remarked. "Did she sound freaked out or angry?"

"No," Stefan shook his head. "But she did say that the sheriff came by Jeremy's room earlier and asked for a statement."

"What kind of statement?" Selina asked, frowning and taking Damon's hand. He was sitting next to her on the couch.

"I don't know," Stefan shrugged. "All she said was that the sheriff came by to get a statement."

"Probably about the attacks," Selina said. She looked at Damon. "What if the sheriff suspects me? Maybe I should just get in my car and leave town."

"Calm down," Damon ordered her. "You don't know that that's what she wanted to talk to Jeremy about. It could be something else entirely."

"Besides," Stefan said, sitting on her other side, "when you and Lucy killed the police officer, there was photographic evidence then and they didn't come after you. Who's to say they will now?"

"You have a point," Selina agreed. "But I'm still going to be on my guard."

"That seems like a good idea. And we won't leave you alone unless you tell us," Stefan promised.

"I don't understand this," Selina said. "I know I did something wrong, but how am I going to explain that it wasn't really my fault? I can't say that I don't actually remember killing anyone. And I certainly can't say that Tyler helped me kill the campers."

"Oh, my God," Stefan said suddenly.

"What?" Selina said.

"Remember Michael's promise? He told you when he found you that he and his descendants would protect you from harm. You're completely safe."

"Yeah," Selina said bitterly. "The only problem is that Richard and Carol are out of town. The promise isn't any good if there's no one around to keep it. Meanwhile, the other members of the council can do whatever the hell they want; while the cat's away, the mice will play."

"It'll be fine," Stefan reassured her. "Remember, technically, Damon and I are members of the council too, and we wouldn't let anything happen to you."

Selina was on pins and needles for most of the rest of the day, but by evening when nothing had happened, she began to relax. While she was doing the daily crossword, she heard the front door opening. "Elena's here," she called to Stefan.

"Just a minute, I'll be right down," he called.

After filling in the last square," she put the puzzle on the footstool just as Elena strode into the living room. "Hi, Elena," Selina greeted her brightly. "I told Stefan you were here and he's on his way down."

"I didn't come here to see Stefan," Elena said seriously. "I came to see you. Tell me, what the hell were you thinking? What the hell was going on in your brain when you thought it would be okay for you to have sex with my brother? He's just a kid!" With every word, Elena's voice rose in pitch, until by the end, she was practically screaming.

Selina sat frozen in her chair, unable to say a word.

A moment later, Stefan and Damon came down the stairs. "What's going on here?" Stefan asked. "What's all the yelling about?"

"Selina had sex with my brother while she was staying at my house," Elena told him. "Did you know about that?"

"Well, no." Stefan said.

"Did you?" Selina asked Damon.

"I did," he admitted.

Elena wasn't finished. Damon's confirmation seemed only to enrage her more. "And not only did she have sex with my brother, she fed off him too. She could have killed him! In fact, she practically did! If we hadn't gotten him to the hospital on time, he would have died!"

"Did it ever occur to you," Damon asked, "that Selina might have had a good reason for having sex with your brother?"

Elena stared at him incredulously. "What good reason could there possibly be?"

"Maybe to keep him out of Lucy's clutches?" Damon replied simply.

"Whatever," Elena scoffed. She walked to stand right in front of Selina. "If you come near any member of my family ever again, I will stake you myself. Understand?"

Still in shock, Selina could just nod.

Elena turned around and looked at Stefan and Damon. "Good night, boys," she told them and strode out the door.

* * *

"Now, we'll have to plan this out very carefully," Sheriff Forbes sat surrounded by her deputies and several pieces of paper, on which were written several discarded plans about how to catch Selina. "Of all the vampires we could have causing trouble, Selina Warren is the worst, because technically, we aren't allowed to hurt her in any way."

"Why?" one of the deputies asked.

"A hundred and forty-five years ago, her cousin Michael Lockwood made her a promise that he and his descendants would protect her from harm so she could live in this town without worry. That promise was later applied to other members of the founding families as well."

"So Selina Warren's causing all this trouble, and we can't do anything to defend ourselves?" asked the same deputy.

"Basically," the sheriff nodded. She paused. "Unless…I got it!" she said loudly, causing several of her deputies to jump. "Meet me here after dark tonight, and we'll go get her. Just follow my lead."

* * *

As soon as Elena left, Selina told Damon and Stefan that she just wanted to be alone. After making absolutely sure she was going to be all right, Damon and Stefan left the house. Selina grabbed a book and began to read. About halfway through, the doorbell rang. Curious, Selina put her book down and walked over to the door, standing on the other side. "Who is it?" she called.

"It's Sheriff Forbes," called the voice on the other side. "Would you come out? We have new developments concerning Amelia Warren's body and I wanted to share them with you."

Selina paused for a moment, wondering whether she should actually go outside, but finally, curiosity beat caution and she opened the door, heading outside. "Yes, Sheriff?" she asked. "What did you find?" Before she could take another breath, however, she felt a sharp pain at the back of her head and blacked out.

As soon as the sheriff was certain Selina was unconscious, she took a needle from the inside of her jacket, inserting it into Selina's arm. "Vervain," she whispered, "just in case you wake up before we get back to the police station."

Two deputies picked up Selina's prone form and threw it gently into the backseat of the sheriff's car and the squad drove back to the station. Once they'd arrived, they took Selina out of the car and brought her down to the basement, where they put her on the floor, tied her up, and waited for her to wake up.

"All right," the sheriff said, gazing down at Selina's body. "I know _we _can't kill her. But I know someone who'll do it for us. Just give me a minute." She ran up the stairs to her office and grabbed the phone, dialing quickly. The phone rang for a little while before the machine beeped on. "Hello, Damon. This is Sheriff Forbes. We caught the vampire who attacked Jeremy Gibert, the campers, and the prostitute, but due to certain complications, we're unable to take care of her ourselves. Would you come and take care of her for us? Thank you so much."

Smiling, she hung up the phone and headed back down to the basement.

* * *

After about an hour, Stefan and Damon decided to head back to the boardinghouse, figuring that Selina had calmed down. They arrived and opened the door.

"Hello?" Stefan called. "Selina, are you home?" He stepped inside, and Damon followed close behind.

"I don't have a good feeling about this," he said. They checked every room in the house. No Selina.

"Maybe she decided to go out," Stefan said.

"She would have at least left a note," Damon said. "I didn't see any." Then, he noticed that the message light on the phone was beeping. "I'll check the message. Maybe it's her telling us where she went." He picked up the phone and pressed the button. He listened to the message, then slowly hung up the phone.

"Was that Selina?" Stefan asked.

"No," Damon shook his head. "It was the sheriff. They have Selina down at the police station, and since they can't kill her because of Michael's promise, she wants me to." He stepped away from the phone and put on his coat.

"You're _going?_" Stefan asked incredulously.

""_We're_ going," Damon corrected him. "Get on your coat. When we get to the police station, you stay in the car. No matter what you hear, stay outside. You'll need to drive once I get Selina out."

Stefan nodded, got his coat on, and followed Damon out to the car. They drove to the police station. Once they were parked, Damon said "remember, no matter what you hear, stay where you are." He got out of the car and strode inside.

The Sheriff met him at the door. "Sorry to have to ask you to do this," she said.

"It's no problem," Damon said. "You know I'd do anything for this town, Liz." He followed her down to the basement.

"Here she is," the Sheriff said.

Damon started violently when he saw her. Selina had clearly been given vervain. They'd taken off everything except her undergarments and chained her against one of the back walls like a prisoner. Her dark hair wet with sweat and in terrible disarray. There were bruises on her face, and her eyes and mouth were only slightly open. When those eyes saw him, they widened a little and she emitted a low moan.

"Horrible, isn't it?" said the sheriff.

"Yes," Damon nodded. He stumbled toward her.

He started again when the sheriff touched his shoulder and handed him the stake.

"Here you go," she said. "I'll let you do what you need to do." She gazed sadly up at Selina. "Poor thing, it's about time somebody put her out of her misery."


	26. Avenged

Damon held up the stake and stared at it, turning it over slowly in his hands. Then, he looked up at Selina, who mouthed "just finish it." He sighed, and stepped toward her, putting the stake up against Selina's bare stomach and heard the sheriff's sharp intake of breath. He looked up at Selina and saw that there were tears in her eyes. He shut his own eyes, and the images came back again in quick flashes: Selina, in her blue velvet dress, Selina looking him deep in the eyes and saying "I've come home to you." And last but not least, the sight of her running away after his father had tried to stake her. He'd wanted to go after her; he really had. His father had been wrong. Even though Selina had changed, she was still the same girl he'd loved. But he'd been a coward. _"That was not Selina. That was a monster who looked like her. She is lost to us and the best thing for you now is to forget all about her."_ His father had ordered him to forget Selina and he'd failed her. But he wouldn't this time.

"I won't," he whispered. "I won't forget again." He looked up at her one last time. At the track of the tears going down her cheeks and the purpling bruises on her face. He threw the stake down. "I won't forget again!" he yelled.

"Damon, what are you _doing_?" Sheriff Forbes yelled. "You have to stake her. She's a danger to this town!" She looked up at Selina. "Is she doing this to you? Has she made you completely lose your mind?"

"No, Liz," Damon shook his head. "Selina's not doing anything to me. I mean, look what you've done to her. How could she have the strength? But I'm not going to let you do anymore."

"She's a vampire, Damon. Do you realize that?" Sheriff Forbes asked. "You say that all this time, the two of you have been engaged. Did you ever realize that you were engaged to a vampire?"

Damon nodded. "As a matter of fact, I did. And all this time, did you realize that you've been asking one for help to kill others?" Though it was difficult, he turned away from Selina and advanced toward the sheriff. "Yes, Liz. I'm a vampire too." He grinned. "Because of Selina, in fact; she was the one who turned me."

"What?" asked the sheriff faintly.

"It's true," Damon said easily. "But of course, now that you know, I can't let any of you leave." And then, before the sheriff could move, he had her on the ground and had managed to wrestle her gun out of her hands. "All right," he said, pointing it at them. "Are you going to let us out of here the easy way, or do you want things to be difficult?"

One of the deputies standing near the sheriff pointed his gun at Damon, and with a shaky hand, he pulled the trigger. The bullet grazed Damon's cheek, but did no further damage.

"All right," Damon nodded. "Difficult it is, then." He began firing the gun, dispatching one of the deputies, the one who'd fired the shot, right away. Then, he felt himself being thrown to the ground. He looked up to see who'd brought him down, and found himself gazing at Sheriff Forbes. "I can't let you do this," she whispered. "Just give me the gun, and I'll let you walk out."

"I don't think so, Liz." Damon said. He managed to push her away and stood up, shooting another one of her deputies in the process. A third got him in the right shoulder and he staggered for a moment before regaining his momentum and managing to straighten up. At that moment, he saw Sheriff Forbes standing next to Selina, holding the stake to Selina's throat.

"If you won't do it, I will," she told him.

He stared at her for a moment, then pulled the gun up and pulled the trigger, firing twice. One of the bullets got her in the arm, the other right in the heart. As she crumpled on the ground, the remaining three deputies began firing shots. Another one of the bullets got Damon in the leg, but even so, he still managed to down them as well.

Breathing heavily, he looked around at the dead bodies of the sheriff and her deputies. He walked over to Sheriff Forbes and looked at her pityingly. "It was either you or her, Liz." He looked up at Selina. "And I choose her." He retrieved the keys from Sheriff Forbes's pocket, quickly unlocking Selina, who fell into his arms. Limping, he laid her down on a faded couch. "Lina?" He asked. "Do you know where you are?"

Her eyes opened slowly. She opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Then, to his relief, he heard her mental voice. _In the basement of the police station. You're hurt._

He shook his head. "It's not that bad. Just a couple of bullets. How about you? Are _you_ all right?"

Her eyes remained steady on him. _I just want to go home_.

"Don't worry," he held her hand. "We'll get you there. Stefan's in the car, outside. Where are your clothes?"

She pointed. _Over there, in a pile in the corner._

He retrieved them, placing the gun next to Sheriff Forbes's body. "Can I assume you're not strong enough to dress yourself?" he asked.

_No._ Selina shook her head slightly. _You're going to have to help me._

Slowly they got her dressed, and then Damon carried her up the stairs.

_You could have gotten Stefan to do this if you said you brought him, _Selina scolded once he'd gotten her on the upper floors. _You've just been shot twice. Heavy lifting might lead to further damage._

He smiled. "You aren't that heavy." He picked her up again and took her outside.

Stefan rushed to meet them. "You're limping," he observed, looking at Damon. "What the hell happened in there?"

Damon handed Selina over to him. "I had some issues with the sheriff," he said simply. "She wasn't going to let us leave, and when she threatened to stake Selina herself, I shot her. And the other deputies too."

Stefan buckled Selina awkwardly into the backseat. "Do you want to sit up front?" he asked Damon.

"No," Damon shook his head, looking inside the car. "There's still some room. I'll sit in the back with Selina."

"All right," Stefan said, once he'd returned to the driver's seat. "I was able to reach Mayor Lockwood, and he said that he would meet us back at the house."

"That's a good idea." Damon replied.

"And," Stefan continued, "what made you want to kill the sheriff?"

"It was the only way I could get Selina out," Damon said. "And Liz threatened to stake Selina herself. What else was I supposed to do?"

The rest of the car ride was silent, and when they reached the boardinghouse, Damon was strangely relieved to see the Mayor's car in the driveway.

"What happened here?" Mayor Lockwood asked when the six of them were seated in the living room.

"Well," Damon said, "last night, it was a full moon, and although Selina usually stays in, this time, she got out." He paused. "During her sojourn, she managed to kill five campers and a prostitute as well as injuring Jeremy Gilbert."

"Oh dear," said Mrs. Lockwood.

"And apparently," Damon continued, "the sheriff came by while Jeremy was in the hospital to ask him questions about the attack. He must've confessed about Selina being a vampire, and that's what made the sheriff decide to kidnap her and stake her 'for the good of the town.'"

"But they aren't supposed to go after you," Mayor Lockwood said, looking at Selina. "You're supposed to be safe."

_Theoretically that's true,_ Selina told him_. But rules only apply when there's someone around to enforce them, and since you were gone, well, when the cat's away, the mice will play._

"And she obviously couldn't tell them the real reason why she killed everyone," Tyler added. "Who would believe that?"

"So where's the sheriff now?" the mayor asked.

"She's dead," Damon said simply. "I had to kill her and her deputies. It was the only way to get Selina out."

"All right," the mayor nodded. "We can deal with that. As long as it was the only way."

"Is Selina going to be all right?" Mrs. Lockwood asked. "And look at you," she said, eyeing Damon. "You're injured as well."

"She'll be all right," Damon replied. "And so will I. She just needs to rest up a bit."

"We could take her home with us until she gets better," Tyler suggested. "Just in case the sheriff's office tries anything else."

"That's not a bad idea," Stefan replied, coming into the room. "Maybe you could take her overnight?"

"All right," the mayor said. "How long will it take you to get things ready?"

"Come back in an hour," Stefan suggested.

The Lockwoods left, and Damon took Selina upstairs, leaving her for a moment to get something for her. He returned with two bags of blood and held them out. "I want you to drink both of these," he said. "You need to keep your strength up."

_But what about you? _Selina asked. _You're just as hurt as I am._

"Drink," Damon said firmly. "I'll go pack your things."

While Selina was on her second bag of blood, there was a knock at the door. She put it down and went to answer it. She found Stefan standing with Elena on the other side.

"I just came to say I'm sorry," Elena told her. "Jeremy told me everything over the phone. I should have known he wasn't telling the truth, I mean Lucy was standing right there when he spoke the first time. Like he'd talk about needing to stay away from her in her presence." She looked at Selina. "And Stefan told me about what happened with the sheriff. Are you going to be all right?"

Selina nodded.

"The mayor's going to take her at least overnight," Stefan said. "Maybe longer. They're coming back in a little while."

Selina took Elena's hand and smiled at her. _I forgive you,_ she said.

Stefan and Elena then left the room, and Damon came back just as Selina was finishing the second bag of blood. _Thank you, _she told him. _Now you go and rest yourself. _

Damon looked as if he wanted to protest, but decided to humor her instead.

The Lockwoods came soon after and drove her to their house. They placed her in her old room, which held a large portrait of her mother. She tucked herself in and fell asleep.

* * *

She was awakened the next morning by a knock on her bedroom door. After a moment, Mrs. Lockwood entered. "Feeling better this morning?" she asked.

"Yes," Selina managed to get out.

"You can talk today," said Mrs. Lockwood in surprise.

"Yeah," Selina said. "I fed a lot last night. That probably helped." She got out of bed. "I think I'll get dressed now," she said.

Mrs. Lockwood left the room and Selina dressed quickly. Once the Lockwoods saw how much better she was, the mayor agreed to drive her back.

"Glad to see you're better," Stefan said. "Do you feel like going to school today?"

"Sure," Selina replied. "Why not?"

School was pretty much uneventful, but after history class, Alaric met up with Selina and pulled something out of his desk.

"What's this?" Selina asked.

"I was looking around in the archives and I found something interesting about your mother," Alaric replied. "Take a look."

Selina took the article from him and read it over.

**Amelia Warren Dead**

_Late last night, the police received an anonymous tip from an unidentified homeless woman who told them that she saw Amelia Warren, who disappeared about a week ago, in the hills in the company of a young man. The young man was in dark clothing, and the two of them were talking when all of a sudden, he pulled out an elaborate silver dueling pistol and shot Amelia point blank in the stomach. Our source told us that the second Amelia was on the ground, she ran for the police, but when she returned, both Amelia's body and the young man were gone. _

_Police are now carefully scouring the area for Amelia's body, and the surrounding towns for the young man who might be her killer._

"M.A.W." Selina whispered as she put the article down.

"What?" Alaric asked.

"M.A.W. I looked in Mama's grave after they took her body away, and there was a silver dueling pistol in it with the initials M.A.W. Don't you see? He's the murder! Oh, this wasn't the result I hoped for, but at least now I know the truth. Thank you, Alaric," she said.

"You're welcome," he replied.

"I think I'm going to kill Lucy tonight," Selina said casually as she and Stefan and Elena were driving home from school. "That bit with the police was a close call."

"I think it's a good idea," Elena said. "If we keep her around, she might kill you for real."

"Just be careful," Stefan said. "We don't want you dead too."

That night, Selina went to Lucy's house and rang the doorbell.

"Hello," she said pleasantly when Lucy answered the door. "Sorry for dropping by unannounced, but you and I need to talk."

"Of course," Lucy said. "Come in."

"So," Lucy said as soon as they were sitting down. "Did you enjoy your night on the town?"

"Yes," Selina replied. "Almost as much as I enjoyed getting picked up by the police, pumped full of vervain, and then tied up in the basement of the police station to be staked."

Lucy's eyes widened. "What? When I told the sheriff about you, I didn't mean for that to happen."

"_You_ told the sheriff about me?" Selina asked. She paused. "What did you expect would happen?"

"I thought you'd be able to fight them off."

"No," Selina shook her head. "The effects of the full moon only last until there's not a full moon anymore. If Damon hadn't shown up, I would have been killed!"

"I'm sorry," Lucy replied.

"No, you aren't." Selina told her. "You're heartless, you're cruel, and you don't give a damn about anyone besides yourself. You don't deserve to exist."

A sly grin spread over Lucy's face. "Are you saying you want to fight?" she asked.

"Yes," Selina nodded. "I am. Choose your weapons."

They both stood up. Selina threw the first punch.

"Fistfighting?" Lucy asked. "Don't you think that's a little juvenile?"

"Fine," Selina replied, grabbing a poker from the fireplace. She held it out like a fencer, jabbing at Lucy who neatly avoided her blows. Then, she pulled the poker away and turned it on Selina, bringing her down to her knees.

"Had enough?" she asked.

Selina shook her head. "Not quite." She manage to get herself away and break off a bit of the stairwell, a spear of splintered wood. She rushed Lucy, managing to avoid a jab from the poker, plunging the spear into Lucy's midsection. Lucy screamed a terrible scream. Then, she became still, her eyes staring straight ahead. Selina just looked at her body. "Like father, like daughter," she whispered.

A/N- I'm going on vacation until the 18, so no updates until then!


	27. Romeo and Juliet

Selina stared at Lucy's body for a few more minutes and then left the house. She arrived at the boardinghouse to find Stefan, Damon, and Elena waiting for her.

"How did it go?" Elena asked. "Is Lucy dead?"

Selina nodded. "She's most definitely dead. I made sure of that before I left." She took a seat next to Damon and sighed. "I know she was evil and tried to kill everyone in town, but now that she's gone, I don't know what to feel."

"We'll find some other way to occupy our time," Damon told her. "Don't worry."

"On a completely different note," Stefan said, "what was it that Alaric wanted to see you about after class today?"

"Oh, that?" Selina pulled the article out of her jeans and handed it to him. "He just wanted to show me this article he found about my mother in the town archives. Apparently, she was murdered and that's that."

Stefan read it over. "Selina," he said as soon as he was finished. "When you read this over the first time, did you notice anything weird about what it says?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "Why? Should I have?"

"Let me see," Elena replied, taking it from him and reading it over herself. "That _is_ pretty strange."

"What is?" Selina asked, leaning forward.

"Well," Elena said, looking at her. "It says in the article that your mother's murderer shot her in the stomach. The body sheriff Forbes found up in the hills was shot in the head and bludgeoned repeatedly."

Selina gasped. "Oh, my God. You're right. I didn't even think about that. So if we take that into account—"

"Then either the witness misidentified your mother, or the body that Sheriff Forbes found in the hills is somebody else," Damon finished.

"Speaking of Sheriff Forbes," Elena said, "Caroline's been calling me a lot. She says her mother never came back last night. Damon, did you happen to see anything after you went to rescue Selina?"

Damon and Selina looked at each other for a moment, and then Selina finally spoke. "Next time Caroline calls, you'll have to tell her her mother is dead."

"What?" Elena asked. "When did she die? How did it happen?"

"I shot her," Damon said. "She and her deputies had Selina chained up in the basement of the police station, and Liz wouldn't let me take her away. When she threatened to stake Selina herself because I wouldn't, I knew that killing Liz was the only way we could leave safely."

"Oh, my God," Elena said. "I don't believe this. I can't just tell Caroline that her mother's dead."

"Richard might do it," Selina told her. "After we told him that Sheriff Forbes's death was the only way to save me, he promised to do damage control."

"Wonderful," Elena replied, flopping back onto the couch.

"Now," Selina said after a moment, "where were we? Oh, yes. We were just talking about how the body that Sheriff Forbes found in the park might not belong to my mother after all, because the cause of death for her was different than the cause of death on the original skeleton."

"We're definite that the body Sheriff Forbes found doesn't belong to your mother," Stefan corrected.

"Well then, who was she?" Selina asked. "And why was she buried with my mother's most prized possessions?"

"I don't know," Stefan shrugged.

Elena looked up at the clock on the wall. "I better get back to the house," she said. "Jenna said she needed my help with some sorting project she's doing."

"'Night," said the other three as she made her way out the door. As soon as she was gone, Selina stood up and yawned. "I don't know about the two of you, but I'm going to go to bed. Good night."

"Goodnight, Selina," they called after her. As soon as she was gone, Damon looked at Stefan.

"You know," he said, "I think I need to do something to help her come to terms with what happened to her mother. She seems really freaked out about it."

"Well if you were her, wouldn't you be?" Stefan asked.

"Good point," Damon said. "I'm not saying that this is something she needs to get over, because I for one loved her mother almost as much as she did, but Selina needs more closure than just finding out her mother is dead."

"So what are you going to do?" Stefan asked.

"I'm going to take her to her parents' old house. Tonight."

* * *

When he was sure Selina was asleep, Damon snuck upstairs to their bedroom, filled a suitcase full of clothes, threw it in the back of his car, and then came back up for Selina. He was lucky that she slept so soundly, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to pull this off so smoothly. As he drove through town, there were no problems with traffic; it was such an odd time for people to be out and about that he was the only one. He parked in the driveway and grabbed the bag first, taking it inside and throwing it in Selina's old bedroom. Then, he came back for her. It wasn't difficult getting her up the stairs, although she yawned and stretched a few times. He finally got her to her room and tucked her in bed, brushing her hair away from her face as she snuggled into the pillow.

* * *

When Selina woke up the next morning, she gasped. "Oh, my God," she whispered to herself, "Where the hell am I?" After getting over the initial shock, she managed to sit up in bed. She noticed the door was open a crack. Praying that this was Damon's idea of a joke, and that she hadn't been kidnapped by unscrupulous strangers, she called out to him. "Damon! Where are we?"

A few minutes later, the door opened and he entered, smiling. "I was wondering when you'd be up," he said.

"Answer my question."

"We're at your parents' old house," he told her, sitting next to her on the bed. "I thought it would help you get closure."

"How altruistic of you," she said dryly. "But that wasn't your only reason for bringing me here, was it?"

"Actually," he said, "I also brought you here so that we could have some time alone. We haven't truly been alone together since the whole mess with Lucy began, have we?"

"No," Selina shook her head.

And with that, he leaned forward and the two of them began stripping off their clothes. After a moment though, Selina pulled away. "What kind of sicko would want to murder my mother?" she asked. "Mama was one of the kindest people who ever lived."

Damon sighed. "My God, Selina. Here we are, truly alone together for the first time in months, and all you want to do is talk about your mother? Am I not distracting enough for you?"

"Sorry," Selina said, grinning and kissing him on the nose. "It's just that I want to explore this place, you know? See what kind of things my parents left behind. Maybe amidst the junk, there'll be answers for me."

"Want me to tell you what _I_ want to explore?" Damon asked.

Selina ruffled his hair. "Poor kid. But I promise you, if you're patient, you will be rewarded. Now, get your pants on and come with me."

"Oh, all right," Damon said, following her to the door.

As soon as they were about to leave, Selina turned to him. "Aren't you going to put a shirt on?" she asked.

Damon shook his head. "Nope," he replied grinning at her.

Selina gave him a small smile, rolled her eyes, and turned away.

They went over every room in the house, but found nothing. Finally, there was only the attic left. "Do you want to go up there?" Damon asked, looking up the shadowy staircase behind a door in one of the little-used guest bedrooms.

"Of course I want to go up there," Selina replied. "The attic's probably where all the good stuff is."

"All right," Damon sighed. "Do you want me to go up first in case there are bats flying around up there?"

"No, I'll go first," Selina said, putting a foot on the first stair and ascending them rapidly.

The room behind the attic door was musty, dusty, and full of random bric-a-brac, not much different from any other attic.

"It doesn't look like there's anything up here but junk," Damon observed.

Selina managed to locate a flashlight and placed the beam in one of the darker corners. "A trunk," she whispered, walking over to it, still training the beam on the trunk's dusty surface. "I wonder what's in here."

"At length, an old oak chest that had long lain hid was found in the castle; they raised the lid. A skeletal form lay moldering there in the bridal wreath of that lady fair. How sad the day in sportive jest she hid from her lord in the old oak chest, it closed with a spring and a dreadful doom, and the bride lay clasped in a living tomb," Damon said quietly.

Selina turned. "My God, Damon that's terrible. Where did you hear a thing like that?"

Damon shrugged. "I read it in a book once."

Selina stepped away from the trunk and shuddered. "Do you really think there could be a body in there?"

Damon stepped around her. "Let's find out." He opened the trunk with a flourish and Selina let out an ear-splitting shriek.

"You're right," she cried, "there _is_ a body in there!"

Damon put an arm around her shoulders. "Calm down. It's not a body, just a uniform."

"A uniform?" Selina stepped toward the trunk and gingerly took hold of some of the fabric. "I think this is Daddy's," she breathed. Carefully, she removed her father's old uniform from the trunk and began rooting around to see what else was in it.

"Diaries," she said in a tone of wonder. "These must have been here for quite awhile. Have a look." She handed one to Damon. "I wonder why they're still up here when Richard and the historical society have the rest?"

"Probably because these are dated from 1847-1864, and thus your father shouldn't have been around to write them." Damon pointed out.

"You have a point," Selina said. "Now, which ones should we take downstairs to have a look at?"

"I want to take 1847," Damon said.

"Why?" Selina asked.

He grinned. "You'll see."

"And I'll take 1860, the year Daddy killed Mr. Pierce, as well as 1864. I want to know what Daddy was up to then."

They took the three journals downstairs to the living room. "Do you think we should call Stefan and Elena to come listen when we read these?" Selina asked.

"Sure," Damon replied.

Selina made the call, and Stefan and Elena were over in a matter of minutes.

"What's going on?" Elena asked.

"We found some of Matthew Warren's post-vampire journals in the attic and we thought you might want to be around when we find out if they have anything good in them," Damon said. "There were 17, but we brought down three: 1847, 1860, and 1864." He opened up the journal for 1847 and began reading.

"_May 8, 1847_

_I'm finally back home, at least temporarily. Father got me two weeks of leave because apparently my commanding officer has been telling him good things about my progress. Amelia met me at the station, but she didn't have little Lina with her and I was worried. It's not uncommon now for babies to die in the first year of life. But when I mentioned this to Amelia, she assured me that Lina was fine. Charlotte was looking after her, and that when I felt rested, she'd take me over to see her."_

"Wait a minute," Elena said. "Who's Charlotte?"

"Charlotte was our mother," Stefan said. "She and Amelia were really good friends."

"So I'll get to hear about you?" Elena said, looking at him. "That's great!"

"Actually, you won't," Stefan replied. "I wasn't born yet."

"If I may continue?" Damon asked.

They nodded and he continued. "_I told Amelia that I was feeling fine, so we just went straight to Charlotte's from the train station. Amelia wasn't lying when she said that Charlotte was keeping Lina. When the two of them came out, I felt shock. Little Lina's gotten so big since I saw her last! Behind them was Giuseppe, and he had Damon by the hand. It was the strangest thing: Lina was looking at Damon over Charlotte's shoulder and reaching out to him. After we all sat down, Charlotte put Selina in his lap and she just fell right asleep! Both Amelia and Charlotte are convinced they're going to be married someday. And I think that doesn't sound like such a bad idea._

_Matthew Warren."_

"Is that why you wanted to read that one out loud?" Selina asked. "So you could regale us with how wonderful I thought you were, even when I was a baby?"

"What can I say?" he grinned. "You have wonderful taste."

After Damon had tucked the journal away, Selina pulled out the one from 1864. She flipped through the pages until she reached about a week after the fourth of July.

"_July 12, 1864_

_Made my yearly visit to Mystic Falls. I saw Dr. Stensrund first. He said he'd had a surprise for me, but that it had disappeared. Then, he encouraged me to go see Amelia, because Selina's died, and Amelia hasn't been coping well with her death. He feared she might be suicidal. He also told me to be careful because everyone in town is rounding up vampires in droves. I promised him that I'd watch myself and went on my way._

"_When I arrived at Amelia's house, I looked in the window. She was in the kitchen. And as Dr. Stensrund said, she didn't look well. I went around to the front door, and strangely enough, she let me in right away. When she saw me, she burst into tears. Told me that she was horribly lonely. I asked her if she wanted to come with me when I left. She told me yes and went to pack a few things. When she returned though, she paused. 'How can you still want me?' she asked. 'I've gotten old. Much too old for you.'_

_I just smiled and shook my head. 'I don't care,' I said. "You'll always be beautiful to me.' We left the house and when we were far enough away from town, we exchanged blood. Then came the hard part: I had to kill her. Gritting my teeth, I pulled out my pistol and shot her in the stomach. Then, as soon as she was conscious again, we made our getaway. We've been moving around since then, and I've been teaching Amelia the ropes. I'm only sorry Lina's dead; if she were here, we could be a family again._

_Matthew Warren."_

"Oh, my God," Selina said, shutting the journal. "My mother's murderer was my father. And he did it so they could be together forever and she wouldn't hurt herself."

"And you know what else it means?" Damon asked. "It means your mother's out and about somewhere. Maybe she's looking for you."

Selina turned back to the inside cover of the journal : "This is the property of Matthew Albert Warren." She paused. "And there's my M.A.W."

Just then, a piece of paper fluttered out of the back of the journal. It was a letter dated three months previously.

_Matthew,_

_You say you've found Selina? When can the two of you get away for a little while? I can't wait to see my baby again!_

_Love,_

_Amelia_

_*Damon is reciting from "The Mistletoe Bough" by Thomas Haynes Bayley_


	28. The Phone Call

Selina read the letter over. "My parents were writing to one another when he was here," she said. "Why didn't he tell me about that? He told me that after he left for war, he never saw her again."

"Maybe he didn't tell you that so you wouldn't be overwhelmed," Elena said. "Take it from someone who knows as well as you: finding out you have a vampire parent is a shock. Imagine how you would have felt if he would have told you that you had two."

"I would have believed him," Selina replied. "I wouldn't have been overwhelmed at all. I don't see how lying to me is the better alternative."

"I don't get it," Stefan said. "You just found out your mother is alive and searching for you after believing she was dead all this time, and instead of being happy about that Selina, you're angry at your father, who I'm sure had the best intentions."

Selina put the letter down and sighed. "You're right, Stefan. It's just that this is so much to get my mind around. There are so many implications with Mama being alive again. She's the only parent I've got left since Tyler staked Daddy."

"You mean like how the body the mayor is going to bury in the grave marked with your mother's name for the interment ceremony isn't actually her?" Damon asked. "Are you going to tell him?"

Selina thought a moment, then shook her head. "I don't think so," she said. "Mama wanted to keep her family in the dark about her whereabouts for a reason, and I'm not going to spoil it for her. If she shows up eventually and wants to set the record straight, that's what should happen; that's how it should come out."

"Who do you think it is that the mayor is burying?" Elena asked.

Selina shrugged. "I have no idea. I'll ask Mama when she shows up, because to tell you the truth, I'm curious myself." She paused. "Part of me wants to go looking for her, you know?"

"You don't even know where she is," Damon pointed out. "It's not like there's a return address on that letter or anything." He looked at Elena. "Do you know what day it is?"

Elena nodded. "It's Tuesday. Why?"

"Because," said Damon, looking meaningfully at Selina, "now that Lucy's dead, the four of us have something else to do. Well," he amended, switching his gaze to Elena, "the four of us and your Aunt Jenna."

The other three gave each other knowing looks. "I'll ask Jenna if we're free this weekend," Elena replied. "And she'll probably want to know if she can bring a date. Is that okay?"

"Sure," Selina nodded. "We wouldn't want to have an odd number." She paused. "Elena, this might seem completely off topic, and of course it is, but how's your brother? Has he recovered? Is he going to be all right?"

Elena nodded. "He's fine, thanks for asking. Now I have a question for you, Selina: what color is your dress? Did you go out and get a big white poufy one with a fifty foot train?"

Selina laughed and shook her head. "No, it's actually a blue halter dress, one from my closet that I don't wear that much. I didn't really feel like going for anything super-fancy."

"All right," Elena nodded. "Jenna and I won't be wearing blue then."

"Why not?" Selina asked. "I actually thought it would be neat if we all wore a bit of blue, but if you don't want to…"

"It's not that," Elena said quickly. "It's just that in articles I've read about wedding etiquette, it always says that bridesmaids and female guests should always refrain from wearing the same color as the bride."

Selina nodded. "I get that. But that's for a more traditional wedding, I suppose. I bet it doesn't apply when the wedding party consists of two vampires that have technically been engaged for 146 years, the groom's brother, who's also a vampire, his human girlfriend who's a dead-ringer for the bride's sister, as well as the girlfriend's aunt and her date."

Elena smiled. "I guess you're right. I'll go talk with Jenna. I'm pretty sure she'll be free this weekend."

* * *

"…and do you, Damon Salvatore, take Selina Warren to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

Damon and Selina grinned at one another for a moment before he said "I do." He took Selina's ring from Stefan and placed it on her finger. The guy who ran the chapel (it didn't seem like he was a priest, but he _was_ licensed to perform weddings), turned to Selina. "And do you, Selina Warren, take Damon Salvatore to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

Selina looked into Damon's eyes. "I do," she said as she took Damon's ring from Elena. The officiator nodded. "Then, by the power vested in me by the state of Nevada, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Damon and Selina took their time with the kiss, and by the time they pulled apart, everyone was cheering. They were matching, Selina in her blue dress and Damon in a tux, white shirt, and light blue silk tie. The rest of the wedding party was dressed in a similar fashion.

They left the chapel and headed to the nearby restaurant where they all took seats at a table by the bar.

"You want anything while I'm up?" Alaric asked Jenna.

She thought a moment. "What are you having?"

"I'm just going to go get a beer," he said.

Jenna nodded. "That's what I'll have too, thanks."

Alaric nodded and walked over to the bar. He brought Jenna back her drink and the two of them disappeared into the hotel casino.

Damon looked at Selina. "Do you want anything?" he asked.

"I'll come with you," she said. They took seats on bar stools and when the bartender asked what they wanted, Selina replied "Old Fashioned, please," followed by Damon's request for a beer of his own. They took their drinks and went back to the table where Stefan and Elena waited for them."

"Cokes for you two?" Selina asked, looking down at their glasses.

"Yep," Elena nodded.

Selina fished one of the cherries out of her glass, stuck it in her mouth, and pulled it off the stem. After placing the stem on her bread plate, she held up her glass. "I'd like to make a toast," she said. The other three held up their drinks. "To good friends, good times, and the person who said 'good things come to those who wait'."

"Hear, hear," they said together, as their glasses clinked

Just then, Selina's cell phone rang. "Hello?" she said, picking it up. The mayor was on the other end. "We're all in Vegas," she answered to the mayor's inquiry of where they were. "Damon and I finally decided to get married."

After she accepted his congratulations, he got down to the real reason for his call. "Just a minute, I'll ask," Selina replied and put the phone down on the table.

"What is it?" Elena asked.

"The mayor wants to hold the interment ceremony after we get back," Selina explained. "So I need to tell him when that will be." She looked at Damon. "When do you want to head back?"

"I figure we should at least stay the weekend, if nothing else," Damon said.

"So should I tell him Tuesday?" Selina replied. "It might be good to have Monday to recover our strength."

"And practice our poker faces," Elena added. "So we don't inadvertently give away that the mayor and the council are burying the wrong body."

Selina picked up her phone again. "All right, Richard. We talked it over and we decided that we're going to stay the weekend and want Monday to compose ourselves. Would Tuesday work for you?"

Selina listened a little while longer and put the phone down again.

"What now?" Stefan asked.

"He wants to know where Lucy went," Selina explained. "He needs help setting up the exhibits about me and my parents and apparently she was the only one who knew how they were supposed to go. What should I tell him?"

"Here," Elena held out her hand. "Give me the phone. I'll talk to him." Selina handed Elena the phone.

"Hello, Mayor. It's Elena," she said. "Selina just told us you wondered where Lucy was because you needed help setting up the exhibits. Well, as far as that goes, I have good news and I have bad news. The bad news is that Lucy told us she had to leave town immediately to visit her terminally ill aunt, but she gave me the plans for the exhibit, so I can help you put it up, if you'd like." She grinned. "All right, Mayor. I'll see you Tuesday morning." She snapped Selina's phone shut and handed it back to her.

"A terminally sick aunt?" Selina asked, looking at Elena admiringly. "Why couldn't I have thought of saying that?"

"Because you were panicking," Elena said. "You can't panic in situations like that. You have to stay _calm_."

Selina giggled. "Wouldn't it be funny if Mama turned up for her own interment? How would you deal with a situation like that?"

"I don't know," Damon replied, "but if she _does_ show up, it will sure be fun to find out."

* * *

That night, Damon and Selina didn't fall asleep right away. "It's been quite a day, hasn't it?" Selina asked.

"It has," Damon agreed. "The only thing missing is having our parents sitting in the front row and our mothers giving our fathers 'I told you so' looks."

"It wasn't like our fathers were ever against us getting married," Selina said. "They just found it incredible that our mothers could be that certain when you were five years old and I was an infant."

"Father always said you were the best thing that happened to me," Damon said, his breath ruffling her hair. "It probably broke his heart when he found out what you were."

"Well yeah," Selina replied, "but he didn't have to go after me with a stake. He could have let me exist as I was. It wasn't like I would have hurt anyone. Well," she amended, "except for Katherine."

Damon grinned. "Goodnight, Selina."

Selina smiled back. "Goodnight, Damon."

* * *

Three days later, Selina woke up early and took Damon's car to the mayor's house. "Hello?" she called. "Richard? Carol? Anyone home?"

A few minutes later, Mayor Lockwood emerged. "Good morning, Selina," he said. "What can I do for you?"

Selina smiled. "I was just wondering if you needed another set of hands to get the exhibits for the interment set up."

Mayor Lockwood stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder. "It's sweet of you to ask, but we're all right. This day is going to be hard enough for you as it is. I don't want to add on any extra grief."

Selina shook her head. "Thanks, but actually I'm fine. I've come to terms with it, really I have. I want to help. Do you want me to bring anything from my parents' house? My Daddy's army uniform is in the attic. I could get that."

"That's not a bad idea," he said.

"And if you wanted, you could help Elena set things up," Mrs. Lockwood said, coming up behind her husband. She paused. "Did Lucy borrow all your dresses for the exhibit, or do you still have a couple?"

"I have a couple," she said.

"Would you mind picking one out and wearing it?" she asked.

"Sure," Selina replied. "As long as you're certain that won't give me away."

"It shouldn't," Mrs. Lockwood replied. "You should be fine."

Selina drove to Dr. Stensrund's house and looked through every closet, finally managing to locate a forest green dress that she didn't remember wearing many times before. She took it out of the house and placed it in the trunk of the car with the necessary matching accessories and drove to Elena's house.

"Hi," Jenna greeted her in response to her knock. "Elena and I are getting ready to go downtown. Do you need help getting ready?"

"That would be nice," Selina said. "My dress and stuff are in the trunk of my car. I'll go grab it.

She got the dress out of the trunk and hurried into the house. Jenna ushered her into the master bedroom, where Elena was waiting, already dressed.

"I bet I look more like Katherine than ever," she said, twirling.

Selina nodded. "Just be prepared for the looks on the guys' faces."

After Selina was ready, Jenna drove the two of them to the town square, where the mayor and Mrs. Lockwood were waiting. "You both look wonderful," Mrs. Lockwood exclaimed.

"Thank you," Selina said. "Now, where are we setting up the exhibits?"

Mayor Lockwood led them inside town hall, and the four of them set to work setting up the exhibits. Selina set them up differently from how Lucy had originally had them, but she thought her way looked better in any case.

Just as they finished setting up, Damon and Stefan strolled into the room.

"So guys," Selina said, gesturing grandly. "What do you think?"

"Great," Damon said, grinning.

"And I see you managed to pull out a suit," Selina said approvingly. "You look wonderful, as always."

"Well," he said, "I figured you'd be dressed up, so I might as well follow suit."

After that, the crowds started to come by, people looking at the exhibit before the interment actually took place so that everyone would actually remember who it was they were finally burying. Selina was glad she was standing by the display about her parents, rather than the one about her. If she'd been standing at her own exhibit, she might have given herself away.

Finally, it was time to bury the body. Selina, Damon, Stefan, and Elena managed to keep straight faces throughout the mayor's speech, and Selina even managed to shed a few tears as she threw a bouquet of roses on the coffin. Afterwards, everyone got in their cars and headed home.

On the way back, Selina's cell phone rang. She answered it quickly, thinking it was the mayor. Instead, it was a female voice. "I'm here," it said. "Don't come looking for me, I'll find you." Then, the caller hung up before Selina could get in a word. She shut the phone and slowly lowered it onto the seat beside her.

"Who was that?" Elena asked. "Was it the mayor again?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "It was Mama, I'm certain of it."

A/N- End of part two. Next up: Lady in Red 3: A Deal with the Devil, featuring a mother-daughter reunion, lots of flashbacks, and Katherine's return to Mystic Falls!


End file.
